Celebrating America’s 250th: American Art Galleries

Spanning nearly 250 years of artistic expression, the American art galleries explore how artists have interpreted the nation’s history, culture, and identity from the early republic to the present day. Featuring artworks from the museum’s permanent collection—including works by Thomas Hart Benton, Milton Avery, Lilla Cabot Perry, Claes Oldenburg, and other influential artists—these galleries reveal the many ways artists have responded to the American experience.

The presentation is further enriched by important loans from institutions including the Toledo Museum of Art, the Art Bridges Foundation, and the DeMell Jacobsen Foundation.

As the United States celebrates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, these galleries offer an opportunity to reflect on the evolving story of American art. Across generations, artists have documented the people, places, and ideas that have shaped the nation while also questioning and expanding the narratives that define it.

Organized into thematic sections, the galleries examine how artists have depicted the American experience in all its complexity. From early portraiture and sweeping landscapes to the bold experiments of modern and contemporary art, the works on view reveal how artistic styles, ideas, and perspectives have evolved over time.