Susquehanna Art Museum (SAM) located in the heart of Midtown Harrisburg is the city’s only dedicated art museum. When you think of museums you might think relics, but here you’ll find exquisitely displayed current works of local, national, and international artists, chosen to represent a variety of styles, themes, and creativity. SAM took over what used to be a bank and its original vault makes for a unique gallery space. SAM also educates the community and visitors about culture and art, and families with kids ages four and up can stop by on the weekends for an art class. If you've been here before, we encourage you to visit again and again. Because SAM doesn’t have a permanent collection of works, their walls can display something new to admire each time you drop in!
Founded in 1926, the Art Association of Harrisburg is the oldest and largest art gallery in the city. Open seven days a week, visitors can enjoy its exhibits spanning spacious five rooms, all within the ambiance of the historic Governor Findlay Mansion overlooking the Susquehanna River. This downtown cultural hub rotates its themed art exhibits every five weeks and features the works of its 500 local and regional artist-members. The Art Association of Harrisburg considers itself a ‘culture concierge’, frequently hosting art and music events and an annual Gallery Walk around the city to introduce the community to the arts. While you’re strolling Downtown Harrisburg, this is a must-see!
You might know The Millworks for their local, sustainable restaurant and craft brewery that’s become a premier Midtown Harrisburg destination. What makes this place a culture corner is its formidable art space that includes both boutique galleries and artist studios. You’ll find painters and potters, sculptors and weavers, and photographers and soap makers. Falling in love with a piece you can purchase makes for a meaningful souvenir from our region! Grab a glass of Millworks' barley wine and browse the exhibits or check out the events calendar for hands-on workshops.
As the Commonwealth’s official museum, the State Museum of Pennsylvania has remarkable artifacts, fascinating exhibits, and of course, art! Affectionately known as the Smithsonian of Pennsylvania, its impressive collection includes contemporary artwork to centuries-old paintings that double as both art and history. You'll find incredible artwork that helps illustrate Pennsylvania's history and heritage spread throughout the museum. The Pennsylvania Icons exhibit includes world-renowned Keystone state artists like Charles Willson Peale, Horace Pippin, Andy Warhol, Aaron Gorson, and N.C. Wyeth. In addition to the art, you can easily spend a few hours wandering three floors of exhibits that give visitors a fascinating and thorough overview of what is distinctly Pennsylvania.
Browse Nyeusi Gallery's impressive collection of local and global art from places like Ghana, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The exhibits focus on Black artists, with the space also decorated with images of historic African American and African activists and philosophers, as well as other Black history artifacts. The gallery invites featured artists for events and also hosts paint nights and other opportunities for the community and visitors to come together in unique ways to celebrate Black art and culture.
Known as "A Palace of Art," priceless works adorn the historic building's halls, offices, and public spaces. From its ornate dome to the legislative chambers, incredible history-laden works abound. Famed illustrator Edwin Austin Abbey spent six years creating the murals that now adorn the lunettes and rondels of the Capitol rotunda. Violet Oakley - the first woman artist to receive a large commission for adorning a capitol building in the United States - spent more 25 years on 43 expansive and intricate murals. That total made her the principal artist for the largest amount of murals in the Pennsylvania Capitol. These two examples say nothing of the building's inspiring architecture and various monuments found throughout the grounds ofthe complex. Free tours are available daily for this world-class art lovers destination.
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