Join us for an evening of art, fun, food, and more!
Bring your friends to mingle in the Calderwood Courtyard, chat over a snack or drink at Jenny’s Cafe, browse the shop, and of course, wander the galleries to take in our world-class collections of art.
Living through the COVID-19 pandemic over the past two years has prompted renewed appreciation of the excitement and pleasures, as well as the challenges and dangers, of travel. In this lecture, we’ll learn about the experiences 17th-century Dutch draftsmen had to face as they journeyed from their studios to places near and far. Jane Shoaf Turner will focus on drawings by artists who traveled beyond the Dutch Republic’s borders—across the Channel to England, north and east to Germany and Scandinavia, south to France, over the Alps to Italy, and across the Atlantic to Brazil.
The Harvard Art Museums will offer free admission to all visitors on Wednesday, May 18, in celebration of Art Museum Day and International Museum Day, organized by the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) and the International Council of Museums (ICOM).
Take in the beauty of the Calderwood Courtyard before exploring three levels of magnificent art from around the world and across the centuries. Check out our special exhibitions Prints from...
This talk will highlight the work and artistic process of Anna Atkins (1799–1871), creator of the first photographically illustrated book. It will also explore the importance of Atkins's photograms to scientific research and documentation in the 19th century.
These tours, designed and led by Harvard undergraduates from a range of academic disciplines, focus on objects chosen by each student guide and provide visitors a unique, thematic view into collections.
Tours are limited to 18 people, and it is required that you reserve your place. At 10am the day of the event, reservations will open and may be arranged online through this form. The Student Guide Tour reservation will also serve as your...
Named after Washington Allston—a visionary painter and 1800 Harvard graduate—the town of Allston features vibrant, eclectic art that reflects the neighborhood's creativity and diversity. On this self-guided tour, you'll discover "can't-miss" public art installations along Western Avenue and learn the stories behind them and their artists. Follow along to explore hand-painted murals, sky-high sculptures, 25-cent art prints, and more!
Tour Stops: 27 Tour Length: 1 hour (shorter routes included) Tour Distance: Up to 2 miles...
Join us for an evening of art, fun, food, and more!
This evening marks the launch of Harvard Art Museums at Night, which will take place the last Thursday of every month, from 5 to 9pm. Each night will feature a new mix of local talent and community partners to make this a festive occasion for all.
Bring your friends to mingle in the Calderwood Courtyard, chat over a snack or drink at Jenny’s Cafe, browse the shop, and of course, wander the galleries to take in our world-class collections of art.
The talk will highlight amateur botanist Ella Hurd and the process she used to make her cyanotypes. It will also explore the importance of camera-less photography to scientific research and documentation in the 19th century.
Anneliese Hager (1904–1997) made significant contributions to the medium of camera-less photography and to the wider surrealist movement in Europe. The camera-less photograph, or photogram, is an image made by placing objects directly on (or in close proximity to)...
Join curator Horace D. Ballard for fresh perspective on two of the museums’ iconic portraits of George Washington through the meaning of gesture and the materialities of fashion. Inspired by Ballard’s recent research on Washington and his rewriting of the portraits’ gallery labels, the talk will explore the important role artists played in shaping the nation’s sense of self after the partisan politics of the Revolutionary War.
Harvard Museum of Natural History, 26 Oxford St., Cambridge
Join us to hunt for mythical creatures across the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture. Can you find a genie, merfolk, or a centaur? What might have inspired a cyclops or a piranha plant? Travel through the galleries of four museums on your quest for these amazing creatures. Test your skills in the galleries of the Harvard Museum of Natural History, the Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology, the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East, and the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments.
On April 15, let the adventure begin! Time is limited, so plan...
Harvard Museum of Natural History, 26 Oxford St., Cambridge
Join us to hunt for mythical creatures across the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture. Can you find a genie, merfolk, or a centaur? What might have inspired a cyclops or a piranha plant? Travel through the galleries of four museums on your quest for these amazing creatures. Test your skills in the galleries of the Harvard Museum of Natural History, the Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology, the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East, and the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments.
On April 15, let the adventure begin! Time is limited, so plan...
The Harvard University Native American Program (HUNAP) and the Harvard Art Museums present a lecture by author David Treuer.
David Treuer, an Ojibwe Indian, will offer a fresh and in-depth perspective on the current state of affairs for Native and Indigenous peoples in the Americas. Drawing from his experience growing up on the Leech Lake Reservation in northern Minnesota and as an accomplished academic, Treuer’s work includes both nonfiction and fiction.
German artist Anneliese Hager (1904–1997) made significant contributions to the medium of camera-less photography and to the wider surrealist movement in Europe. The camera-less photograph, or photogram, is an image made by placing objects directly on (or in close...
Join Ben Sibson, a graduate student at Harvard in human evolutionary biology, for a conversation about how art can enhance our understanding of the evolution of human health. Looking at works of art installed in the University Study Gallery this semester for the undergraduate course Human Evolution and Human Health, Sibson will show how the objects provide useful information about the physical activities performed by people across time and space, as well as the foods they ate, the clothes they wore, and the spaces where they lived.
Experience an epic day of archaeological events with the family! Activities are scattered across two museums so explore Native North American, Central American, Egyptian, Mesopotamian and Mediterranean archaeology. Throw a spear with a spear thrower. Talk to student archaeologists who excavate in locations around the world.
Let us introduce you to some of the most infamous female authors you’ve never heard of who carved out cultural spaces for themselves. Our challenge to you: Remember their names. Share their stories. Rewrite history.
Highlights include:
A copy of Phillis Wheatley's collection of poems autographed by the author
A mysterious ownership inscription by a medieval woman named "Johanna" in a copy of Jerome's Vitas Patrum
Mary Wroth's copy of Xenophon's Cyropaedia, bearing her cryptic monogram...