During your visit to this Birmingham art museum, explore its permanent collection representing a rich panorama of cultures, visit the Museum Store to discover unique treasures, or enjoy a snack or lunch at Oscar’s, the museum’s café.
Highlights from the Birmingham Museum of Art’s Permanent Collection
Boasting more than 25,000 paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings and decorative arts dating from ancient to modern times, the Birmingham Museum of Art holds one of the finest art collections in Southeast America.
African Art
The Birmingham Museum of Art’s African art collection is made up of nearly 2,000 African objects derived from the major culture groups of sub-Saharan Africa. Dating from the 12th century to the present, the African art collection includes fine examples of figure sculpture, masks, ritual objects, furniture, household and utilitarian objects, textiles, and ceramics and metal arts.
American Art
Dating from the late 18th century to the mid 20th century, the American art collection includes American paintings, sculptures, works on paper and decorative arts by artists such as Gilbert Stuart, Childe Hassam, Georgia O’Keeffe, Hiram Powers, Frederic Remington and Frank Lloyd Wright. Of particular importance in the museum’s collection are American landscape paintings by Albert Bierstadt and chosen by The National Endowment for Humanities as one of the 40 American masterpieces that best depict the people, places and events that illustrate America’ story.
Art of Alabama
The Birmingham Museum of Art has been collecting Alabama art since first opening. Among the collection are paintings by Hannah Elliott and Carrie Hill. In addition Alabama art holdings include a unique collection of paintings, sculptures and pottery that represent folk art and one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of Southern quilts in the country.
Asian Art
The Asian art collection was started in 1951 when an assortment of Chinese textiles was gifted to the Birmingham Museum of Art. Today the collection includes over 4,000 objects and is considered the largest collection of Asian art in the Southeast. Highlights include a rare Ming dynasty temple wall, Tang dynasty tomb figures from China, Jomon period pottery from Japan and the Vetlesen Jade Collection, one of the most important jade collections in the U.S, on long-term loan from the Smithsonian Institution.
Contemporary Art
The Birmingham Museum of Art’s collection of contemporary art is comprised of paintings, sculptures, videos, photographs, works on paper and installation art that illuminates movements and trends from the 1960s to the present. View works of art by Joan Mitchell, Andy Warhol, Bill Viola, Lynda Benglis, Kerry James Marshall, Callum Innes, Grace Hartigan, Larry Rivers, Louise Nevelson, Frank Fleming and Philip Guston.
European Art
Highlighted in the museum’s European art collection is the Kress Collection of Renaissance Art including Renaissance and Baroque paintings, sculptures and decorative arts by artists such as Pietro Perugino, Antonio Canaletto, Paris Bordone, Jacob van Ruisdael, Thomas Lawrence and Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot.
European Decorative Arts
The European decorative arts collection includes more than 12,000 objects of ceramics, glass and furniture spanning from the Renaissance to the present. View items from the only public collection of European cast iron, the Eugenia Woodward Hitt Collection and the Dwight and Lucille Beeson Wedgwood Collection featuring over 1,400 objects that illustrate the entire production of the Wedgwood factory from its early years through the 19th century.
Native American Art
Explore Native American art from the Eastern Woodlands, Plains, Northwest Coast and Southwest regions. Notable holdings within the Native American art collection include Navajo blankets and rugs, an extensive collection of Northwest coast art and important historic and contemporary Pueblo ceramics. In addition, the Native American holdings feature examples of Plains beadwork and shaman headdresses.
Pre-Columbian
The Pre-Columbian collection includes objects from Mesoamerica, Central America and the Northern Andes. See examples of: Zapotec ceramics; Maya figure sculptures, ceramics and jewelry; Aztec stone sculptures; and West Mexican figural tomb sculptures. Costa Rica, Guatemala and Panama cultures are also represented with gold jewelry, mutates, censors, volcanic stone figure sculptures and ceramics.
The Charles W. Ireland Sculpture Garden
The Charles W. Ireland Sculpture Garden is one of the most distinctive spaces for the display of outdoor art in the southeatern United States. Stroll through the beautiful sculpture garden and delight in works by artists such as Fernando Botero, Jacques Lipchitz and Auguste Rodin.
Dining at Oscar’s
Stop by Oscar’s, the Birmingham Museum of Art’s café, for a snack or lunch. Featuring a seasonal lunch menu made using fresh local ingredients, you will find everything on the menu from lemon tarragon chicken salad to the Sultan of Morocco, hand pressed Angus beef, caramelized onions and sautéed mushrooms on a brioche bun.
- Be sure to stop by the Museum Store offering some of the best shopping in Birmingham. You will find everything from one of a kind gifts made in Alabama to unique treasures from around the world.
- Complimentary wheelchairs are available at the security station near the parking lot entrance on first-come, first-serve basis.