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You may want to print copies from this pdf to share with chaperones as they make their way around campus. Full color maps are also available in the museum lobby.
An interactive version is available at this link: https://www.smith.edu/iframe/about-smith/map

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Smith College Botanic Garden offers guided and self-guided visits to the Lyman Conservatory by appointment. Teachers may choose to schedule visits to the SCMA and BG on the same day, and split large groups to alternate between locations.

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Connecting Natural and Human Worlds through Smith's Mum Show and the Dream of the Red Chamber

Students in EAL 231: The Culture of the Lyric in Traditional China connect the natural world with human imagination through chrysanthemums, a signature flower for the autumn season in Chinese culture and literature. For their project, each student selected a poem from "Dream of the Red Chamber", composed by Cao Xueqin. Through the poem and the chrysanthemum of their choice, each student investigates how plant characteristics and growth habit contributes to multiple symbolic meanings in literary works, cultural significance, and philosophical traditions.

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Connecting Natural and Human Worlds through Smith's Mum Show and the Dream of the Red Chamber Students in EAL 231: The Culture of the Lyric in Traditional China connect the natural world with human imagination through chrysanthemums, a signature flower for the autumn season in Chinese culture and literature.

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Note that the information about the first floor galleries is out-of-date, but the rest of the document is accurate. Please write to musedcu@smith.edu for information about the sensory experience of the Sacerdote Gallery and its current temporary exhibition.

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During one hour guided visits, SCMA's Student Museum Educators (SMEs) offer participants  inquiry-based learning experiences with works of art. We promote connection with works of art by encouraging PreK-12 students to look closely, ask questions and share observations and perspectives. Multi-sensory gallery activities may incorporate observational drawing, games, movement, writing reflection and analysis of primary sources, in addition to dynamic questioning strategies that activate critical thinking.

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Hi! My name is Alya, I major in Art History and pursue Museum Concentration. Whenever I get an opportunity, I travel and explore new locations - and I usually end up in a museum or a gallery. I also love drawing and sculpting: there is a 99% chance of my sketchbook being in my bag at all times. I'm so happy to work in the SCMA this year!

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Visit the museum's website to find out what's on view and explore the collection.

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Discover artworks from across periods and geographies in our permanent collection galleries and our temporary exhibitions. Engaging people with first-hand experiences of art, artists and museum practice is core to SCMA's mission.

Collection: The museum's collection ranges from ancient Greek vases to contemporary video art. The works in our permanent collection galleries are rotated regularly, so there's something new to see each time you visit.

Exhibitions: Special exhibitions highlight a dynamic range of artworks and artists.

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Art meets you Discover artworks from across periods and geographies in our permanent collection galleries and our temporary exhibitions. Engaging people with first-hand experiences of art, artists and museum practice is core to SCMA's mission. Collection: The museum's collection ranges from ancient Greek vases to contemporary video art.

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Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas from the Smithsonian Museum of American Art 

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Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas from the Smithsonian Museum of American Art 

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July 24, 2026 – January 10, 2027

Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas from the Smithsonian American Art Museum features works from the world’s largest public collection of the artist’s paintings and offers an intimate view of Thomas’s evolving practice during her most productive years, from 1959 to 1978. At a deeply politicized moment in American history, Thomas made a deliberate choice. As she put it, “Through color I have sought to concentrate on beauty and happiness, rather than on man’s inhumanity to man.” Organized around three themes that preoccupied her—Space, Earth, and Music—the exhibition invites visitors to experience the world as Thomas did: through luminous fields of color that evoke sound, motion, temperature, and even scent.

Extensive pre-visit materials are available to support learning related to this exhibition: https://americanart.si.edu/exhibitions/alma-thomas

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Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas from the Smithsonian American Art Museum

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Alma Thomas (1891–1978) is a singular figure in twentieth-century American art. After retiring from a long career as a schoolteacher, she developed a distinctive form of abstraction defined by bold pattern, rhythmic composition, and radiant color. Inspired by nature, the cosmos, and music, Thomas created vibrant paintings that transcended established categories, drawing on elements of gestural abstraction and color field painting while forging a style entirely her own.

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April 10–September 20, 2026

This installation of photographs from SCMA’s collection invites visitors to slow down and imagine the lives unfolding in each image. What each person notices, and what they bring from their own experiences, shapes the story they see. Moving from photograph to photograph, visitors may consider what is happening in the captured moment, which visual clues build a narrative, what lies beyond the frame, and what came before or might follow.

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This installation of photographs from SCMA’s collection invites visitors to slow down and imagine the lives unfolding in each image. What each person notices, and what they bring from their own experiences, shapes the story they see. Moving from photograph to photograph, visitors may consider what is happening in the captured moment, which visual clues build a narrative, what lies beyond the frame, and what came before or might follow.

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Hi! My name is Claire (she/her) and I am a double major in Anthropology and Italian with a museums concentration. In my free time I love doing crafts with my friends and exploring outside or in the botanic garden. I can't wait to explore the galleries with you!

Note: Claire is currently studying abroad in Italy and returning in Fall 2026!

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Outside the Box: Frames to Focus on During Your Next SCMA Visit

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Outside the Box: Frames to Focus on During Your Next SCMA Visit

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By Kay Horak '24

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Kay Horak '24 is a self-designed Art Conservation Major with a Mathematical Sciences Minor and Museums Concentration. She is the 2023-2024 Kennedy Museum Research Fellow in Art History at SCMA, working with Danielle Carrabino, Curator of Painting and Sculpture. Here, she shares some of what she's learned about frames in the museum's collection through her fellowship.

While walking through any museum's galleries, it can be easy to overlook the frames surrounding the artworks hanging on the walls. However, frames can constitute their own body of work and genre of art and make up an important part of a museum's collection. Such is the case at SCMA, which boasts impressive holdings from the foremost framemakers dating back hundreds of years. This post will highlight just a few standout frames with incredible histories to keep an eye out for next time you're pursuing the permanent collection.

Florine Stettheimer, Henry McBride, 1922
Currently on view on the second floor

Florine Stettheimer's eccentric art is often complimented by equally eye-catching and unexpected frames. The frame around the portrait in SCMA's collection is no exception. This painted white frame has been confirmed by multiple frame experts to be original to the piece and designed by Stettheimer herself. Many of the original frames designed and selected by Stettheimer were painted white, perhaps expanding the white background of her pieces. This particular frame has a reverse profile, which means the highest point in the frame is the area closest to the artwork, called the sight edge. The profile serves to push the painting forward towards audiences, emphasizing the bright and bold nature of the piece.

George Bellows, Pennsylvania Excavation, 1907
Currently on view on the third floor

George Bellows utilized a variety of frames during his prolific career and thus, extensive scholarship exists on Bellows' specific frame choices (see article). The frame on this piece is a reproduction crafted in the style of many of the frames that adorned the artist's works. In fact, the frame was created right here at SCMA in collaboration with Smith students! For several years, SCMA staff trained students in the art of frame restoration and construction. The frame on this piece was created in 2005 through this program. It mimics the style of New York framemaker M. Grieve Company, who framed numerous works by Bellows. The gilded frame features repeating parallel lines of varying width. Its profile curves downward toward the sight edge, the edge closest to the painting, helping draw the viewer into the piece and immerse them in the landscape.

Amile-Ursule Guillebaud, Portrait of the Artist, 1840s
Currently on view on the third floor

Both the frame surrounding this painting and featured within it actually aided in fleshing out the history behind the work and its artist. Little is known about Amile-Ursule Guilledbaud beyond her nationality and birth and death dates. With mysterious artists and paintings like this, sometimes frames can aid in pinning down a more precise date or location of creation. In this case, identifying the frame portrayed in the piece as an 1840s Austrian frame helped narrow down the date made to a singular decade. The frame around the painting is also likely from the 1840s as well. Prior to this discovery, a much broader range of dates created had been considered. Findings such as this demonstrate the constructive and intertwined relationship between paintings and frames.

Lorenzo di Credi, The Virgin Adoring the Christ Child with the Infant Saint John the Baptist, circa 1485-90
Currently on view on the second floor

This frame is a wonderful example of a tondo frame that complements the work and its subject matter. Derived from rotondo, Italian for "round", tondo is a term and category of art that blossomed during the Renaissance to describe a large, circular piece of artwork, often a painting. Thus, a tondo frame is round itself and created to adorn such a painting. The tondo frame is unique among frames since it is defined by its shape, rather than its carvings or profile.

Although this tondo frame is likely not original to the painting, it pairs well with the piece and includes details that directly relate to the work. The carved decorations of flora and crops, including acorns and pomegranates, reinforce themes of fertility and abundance. Such fruits were a common motif on these frames and thought to symbolize fruits found in the Garden of Eden, reflecting the ubiquity of religious subject matter in the genre.

Although this selection only scratches the surface of remarkable frames at SCMA, I hope this introduction will enhance your next museum visit and inspire you to look closely at these singular works of art.

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Outside the Box: Frames to Focus on During Your Next SCMA Visit

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Kay Horak '24 is a self-designed Art Conservation Major with a Mathematical Sciences Minor and Museums Concentration. She is the 2023-2024 Kennedy Museum Research Fellow in Art History at SCMA, working with Danielle Carrabino, Curator of Painting and Sculpture. Here, she shares some of what she's learned about frames in the museum's collection through her fellowship.

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Hi! My name is Liv and I am a prospective Education major here at Smith. In my free time I like to write letters, train circus arts and physical theater, and ride my bike all around western Mass. I'm so excited to meet you!

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Hi everyone! My name is Lola (she/her) and I'm a Junior at Smith, and a Psychology / Spanish double major with a concentration in Poetry. I am from Sacramento, California and in my free time, I love crafting, junk journaling, spending quality time with my friends, and tap dancing. I also spend a LOT of time in coffee shops (pictured above). My favorite spot on Smith College campus is the botanic gardens and I am an aspiring writer.

Note: Lola is currently studying abroad in Spain for Spring and will return in Fall 2026.

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Hi! My name is Maeve (she/her), and I'm a prospective American Studies/Art History double major and museums concentrator at Smith. In my free time, I love to take ballet classes, listen to new music, and explore different study spots in Northampton. I'm so excited to work with you!

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Hey y'all! I'm Simone, and I'm a sophomore in the history major with a French Minor and perhaps soon a museum concentration. My main hobbies are cheerleading, DnD, reading (mostly sci-fi), drawing, and cafe-hopping, but I'm always looking for new things to try. I look forward to learning and teaching together!

Note: Simone is currently studying abroad in Paris and will return in Fall 2027.

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This packet of activities developed by Rana Gahwagy '22 provides worksheets to guide exploration of the geosciences collection of Smith College, located in Sabin-Reed and Burton Hall and connect these objects to works of art in the galleries of SCMA.

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Discover artworks from across periods and geographies in our permanent collection galleries. The museum’s collection includes more than 28,000 artworks dating from antiquity to the present and created by artists from around the world.

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Worlds in Process: Art from the SCMA Collection

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Worlds in Process: Art from the SCMA Collection

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This project, called Worlds in Process: Art from the SCMA Collection, pilots new strategies for displaying the collection on the 3rd floor of the museum.

The installation includes artworks from a range of time periods, cultures, materials, and perspectives alongside places to gather and reflect. When a group of museum staff set out to reimagine this floor, we wanted to try some new approaches, which included deepening our understanding of what visitors (especially Smith College students) find most meaningful and welcoming.

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This project, called Worlds in Process: Art from the SCMA Collection, pilots new strategies for displaying the collection.

The installation includes artworks from a range of time periods, cultures, materials, and perspectives alongside places to gather and reflect. When a group of museum staff set out to reimagine this floor, we wanted to try some new approaches, which included deepening our understanding of what visitors (especially Smith College students) find most meaningful and welcoming.

Through gathering comments from visitors we heard that people wanted to see a mix of works from different time periods and cultures, more works by Black, Indigenous, Latine and AAPI artists, more accessible seating and spaces to gather. This is a work in progress; over the next few years, we will continue to gather and incorporate feedback throughout the museum.

The underlying theme of the installation concerns how humans connect to their environments, including place and social conditions. This idea forms a throughline for the art on view, which is organized into four sections: Nature and Its Forms; Thresholds and Transitions; Extraction; and Technologies. But this framing is just one among many possibilities; there are many ways to make meaning about and across works of art.
This installation is supported by the Bonnie Johnson Sacerdote, class of 1964, Museum Education Fund; the Suzannah J. Fabing Programs Fund; the Louise Walker Blaney, class of 1939, Fund for Exhibitions; and the gift of Ellen Lee, class of 1971

There are many kinds of relationships humans have to the natural world, including exploiting it in order to create and maintain wealth and power. Products familiar from the supermarket, such as coffee, tea, fruits, vegetables, and tobacco, are part of this story, but so are land, water, fossil fuels, and human labor, whether forced or compensated. These materials tell stories about social and political control both about their moment of extraction and subsequent circulation.

Nature is all around us. For millennia, artists have turned to nature as a source of inspiration. The artworks in this section demonstrate different ways that artists have sought to give form to their surroundings. They include pieces that depict environmental features including waterways, animals, architecture, and plants along with scenes that artists invent.

Humans have historically manipulated resources to create tools that transform how they engage with their surroundings. This section explores some of the innovations that have shaped human culture and development and, in turn, transformed natural and built environments.

Artist unknown. Iranian. Jug , late 12th century. Pierced and glazed stonepaste with blue paint. Gift of Elinor Lander Horwitz, class of 1950. SC 2016.29.27

The works in this section foreground how people across time and space have created and used objects to negotiate change individually and collectively. At its core, this section asks: how do humans navigate shifting states of being? What role do objects play in how we construct relationships with and in response to our surroundings? How do objects link us to the generations that came before us and that will come after us?

Artist unknown. India. Bodhisattva, probably Avalokiteśvara Padmapāṇi . Pala period, c. 10th-11th century. Stone. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Marcus. SC 1963.81

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Worlds in Process: Art from the SCMA Collection

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This project, called Worlds in Process: Art from the SCMA Collection, pilots new strategies for displaying the collection. The installation includes artworks from a range of time periods, cultures, materials, and perspectives alongside places to gather and reflect.

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Continue your exploration of geology with a visit to this outdoor space with large scale specimens and a sculpture.

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This story map was created with the Story Map Tour application in ArcGIS Online.

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SCMA Restroom Panel 60x22-Final May 2016

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Arts of Africa interactive: A Contemporary Entryway into African Art

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Arts of Africa interactive: A Contemporary Entryway into African Art

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Arts of Africa, a "Digital Intervention" by Mosa Molapo, '22

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A Contemporary Entryway into African Art

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Grayson Matula ’23 created the map with ArcGIS StoryMaps and Timeline JS, with editing by Danielle Carrabino, Curator of Painting & Sculpture, and Yao Wu, Jane Chace Carroll Curator of Asian Art.

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This educational video was developed in early 2021 for a seventh grade social studies class interested in exploring the history of the Japanese Samurai through art in the SCMA collection. The video is 6:48 minutes long, and was written and narrated by Tiv Hay-Ruben '21 and edited by Kayara Hardnett-Barnes '23.

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These printable cards can be used by groups, individual students and families to explore the galleries independently.

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Fill out this form to schedule a FREE guided or self-guided visit. Programs are developed in response to your goals and students' needs.

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Pick a date and time that works for you - it's fast and easy.

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Illustration from thank you letter by a Jackson Street school student.

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A bus subsidy of up to $400 is available to defray transportation costs for travel from your school to the museum, for up to four trips per year. You must fill out this google form and then submit the invoice via email to museduc@smith.edu in order for us to process the reimbursement.

Bus subsidies are made possible thanks to the generosity of SCMA members; membership fees seed the funding for the program. Educators receive a 10% discount on memberships.

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by Libby Keller, '20

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Title: Rosary Bead; Mass of Saint Gregory, ca. 1500-1510 Link to Smith College Museum of Art Collections Record: http://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?museum=all&t=objects&type=all&f=&s=rosary+bead&record=2 This rare and intricately carved bead was probably once part of a rosary, a chain of beads, each serving as a reminder to say a particular prayer in the Catholic rosary meditation.

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Explore publicly accessible sculptures, paintings and installations located beyond the walls of the museum. This resource can be used to complement a museum visit, during self-guided time on campus before or after lunch.

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Beyond the Museum: Art on Smith's Campus

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Harness the power of maps to tell stories that matter. ArcGIS StoryMaps has everything you need to create remarkable stories that give your maps meaning.

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Produced by the Office of Admissions, this self-guided tour highlights special places on campus.

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Every tree on campus has a story.

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This story map was created with the Story Map Tour application in ArcGIS Online.

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https://scma.smith.edu/visit/getting-here

Buses should drop off students on the "museum side" of Elm Street and Bedford Terrace, pulling to the side just before the traffic light, at the base of SCMA's driveway. This is the safest and most accessible place to stop the bus temporarily. If you are approaching on the westbound side (heading uphill from downtown Northampton), proceed one block beyond the museum to the next light and use the traffic island on the right at Prospect Street to turn around and pull in front of the museum entrance. Do not pull into the driveway of the museum.

Bus parking is available at the parking lot where the Smith College horse stables were formerly located, just past Paquette St. on Route 66/West St. Buses may not remain parked along Elm Street.

Vans may use the metered parking along Elm Street ($.50/hr, download the Parkmobile app in advance or use quarters).

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For teachers and chaperones who may be carpooling with school vans or driving separate vehicles, there are two options for parking. Free parking is available in visitor spaces (demarcated by blue lines) are available in the Smith College parking garage on West Street or in the Dickinson Lot off Green Street.

The second option--and closest to the museum--is to park on metered spaces on Elm Street or Bedford Terrace. You can pay by quarters or Parkmobile app. Parking is just fifty cents per hour, and there is no time limit for how many hours you can stay in these spots.

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We're Hiring!

Check out the open positions at ParkMobile.

Click here

Reserve Your Spot Ahead of Time

Search for reserved parking in lots and garages

The Smarter Way to Park

ParkMobile puts the power to park in your hands. Whether you're looking for a spot now or reserving a spot for later, ParkMobile has you covered.

Learn How to Park Now Learn How to Reserve Parking

Easily Pay for Parking From Your Phone

No change? Quickly pay for on-street parking right from your mobile device. Watch the video to learn how simple parking with ParkMobile can be.

Parking by City

ParkMobile is making parking easier in over 3,000 locations across all major cities in North America.

Contactless With ParkMobile

Need to run errands but you're worried about the possible spread of germs? Available in more than 400 cites across the U.S., ParkMobile gives you a hands-free way to park to reduce your chance of exposure to COVID-19.

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ParkMobile Parking App | Find & Pay for Parking - On-street & Reservation

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Check out the open positions at ParkMobile. Click here Search for reserved parking in lots and garages ParkMobile puts the power to park in your hands. Whether you're looking for a spot now or reserving a spot for later, ParkMobile has you covered. Learn How to Park Now Learn How to Reserve Parking No change?

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by Saraphina Masters '18

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Greek Vases: Welcome to the Smith College Museum of Art's Greek Vase Guide

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An interactive tool to help visitors learn more about what they see on Greek vases

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by Natalie Sandstrom, '19J

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Please share these guidelines with all adults who will be accompanying students on the visit to the museum, including other teachers, parents/caregivers, paraprofessionals/ESPs, school nurses, student teachers, and administrators.

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Photography is encouraged, except where indicated by the icon of a camera with a slash through it. No flash photography or tripods.

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Social Narrative for PreK-12 School Groups

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Social Narrative for PreK-12 School Groups

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Use this slideshow to prepare students, especially neurodiverse students, for their museum visit.

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SCMA Social Story- School Groups_2.22.23

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Start at the President's House and explore the landscape along the Mill River and Paradise Pond.

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This story map requires JavaScript, but running JavaScript is not currently allowed by your web browser. If you wish to view this story, please enable JavaScript in this browser or try a different browser.

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This story map requires JavaScript, but running JavaScript is not currently allowed by your web browser. If you wish to view this story, please enable JavaScript in this browser or try a different browser.

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by Hannah Elbaum, '19
This project aims to support visitors with Autism Spectrum Disorder in museum spaces by providing a structured, yet self-guided visit tool.

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Hello!

This is a scavenger hunt looking for certain objects in the Smith College Museum of Art. All the objects on this scavenger hunt are related to mythology.

What is mythology?

Myths are stories that people tell each other to offer some explanations for why life is the way it is. The word "mythology," means that people tell the stories to each other. Myths are part of every culture around the world.

Myths were originally stories that were told out loud. Artists imagined what the characters might look like and created paintings and sculptures. How do these artworks compare to your imagination of what the character would look like?

Once you have passed the museum shop and the security guard, click the Go Button below to begin your hunt:

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This is a scavenger hunt looking for certain objects in the Smith College Museum of Art. All the objects on this scavenger hunt are related to mythology. Myths are stories that people tell each other to offer some explanations for why life is the way it is.

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by Laura Green '18

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Yes, this is a teen audio guide for the Smith College Museum of Art. Yes, we all know those are always better than the adult guides. So feel free to use away, adults!

Many of these audio stops are suitable for younger children, but others are not. Parents should read the audio transcriptions before allowing their children to listen.

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Teen Audio Guide - Smith College Museum of Art

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Yes, this is a teen audio guide for the Smith College Museum of Art. Yes, we all know those are always better than the adult guides. So feel free to use away, adults! Many of these audio stops are suitable for younger children, but others are not.

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The Museum owns several of LeWitt’s sculptures and works on paper, but Wall Drawing #139  exists only as a series of instructions until it is executed on a wall. This video documents the work being installed in a gallery in the museum. Teachers and students can visit its current installation on the 2nd floor of Burton Hall.

Video by One Match Films, Easthampton, MA.

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Bust of a Chinese Man by Jean Baptiste Carpeaux

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Bust of a Chinese Man by Jean Baptiste Carpeaux

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By Susie Parks '19

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An anonymous Chinese man served as the model for this sculpture by Jean Baptiste Carpeaux. As part of her museum internship, Susie Park '19 was inspired to learn more about what might have brought him to Paris in the nineteenth century.
Click on the buttons below to view videos that document her research.

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An anonymous Chinese man served as the model for this sculpture by Jean Baptiste Carpeaux. As part of her museum internship, Susie Park '19 was inspired to learn more about what might have brought him to Paris in the nineteenth century. Click on the buttons below to view videos that document her research.

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SCMA Restroom panels 19x12-Final May 2016

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SCMA Gender Inclusive Restrooms for Padlet

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Admission Office tours for prospective students

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Admission Office tours for prospective students

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Important COVID-19 Information

All campus buildings are closed to the public until further notice. The Office of Admission is offering a limited number of guided tours for prospective students and families. Registration is required. All information sessions and interviews will continue to be conducted virtually.

Please consult A Culture of Care (Smith's COVID-19 response plan) for information on maintaining a safe and healthy campus.

Tours

The Office of Admission is offering a limited number of guided tours for prospective students and families. Tours will be conducted outdoors and will not have access to buildings, with the exception of a brief walkthrough of a residential life house. You must register for a tour in advance; we are not able to accommodate walk-in visitors with a guided campus tour at this time.

To register, please consult the office calendar for available dates.
OFFICE CALENDAR
If you are not able to register for a guided tour, you are welcome to visit Smith and take a self-guided tour using our walking guide.

Virtual Information Sessions

Virtual information sessions are offered each week. Registration is required. To register, please consult the office calendar for available dates and learn more on the Virtual Visits & Programs page.

Virtual Group Visits

If you have a group of ten or more students from your school or community-based organization, we would be happy to meet with your group virtually. To schedule a group meeting, please fill out the Virtual Group Visit Request form. We require at least three weeks advance notice to schedule a group visit.

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Tours & Information Sessions | Smith College

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All campus buildings are closed to the public until further notice. The Office of Admission is offering a limited number of guided tours for prospective students and families. Registration is required. All information sessions and interviews will continue to be conducted virtually.

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The Ancient World Gallery offers new ways of viewing ancient objects. The definition of the term "ancient" differs according to each culture's history. Often the designated periods do not align with one another. Yet, despite originating in various political, social and religious structures, the objects on view have similarities. Spanning many cultures and several millennia and encompassing a wide range of materials, these works are grouped according to function and style and represent common themes, such as powerful figures, luxury and ornamentation, everyday life and the afterlife. The gallery also contains a case of ancient Greek, Roman and Chinese coins. A digital map locates selected objects in their original areas of creation. It offers more information about some of the works on view, compares their materials and provenance and highlights cross-cultural connections.

While this gallery enriches our understanding of the ancient world, the display also presents certain challenges. SCMA endeavors to be transparent about the problems related to collecting and exhibiting ancient art in the modern era, including issues of previous ownership, the treatment of funerary objects and authenticity.

The ancient world gallery offers evidence of the creativity of human civilization throughout history. It also tells the story of SCMA itself, highlighting over a century of collecting ancient art through purchases, gifts and bequests.
This installation is supported by The Maxine Weil Kunstadter, class of 1924, Fund and the Nolen Endowed Fund for Asian Art Initiatives.

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In 2019, the display of SCMA's ancient art collection was reimagined to provide a more global view of the ancient world. Previously, this gallery's scope had been limited to Egyptian, Greek and Roman art. The gallery now includes ancient objects from China, Japan, Korea, Persia and the Americas.

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NAEA-AAMD Research Study: Impact of Art Museum Programs on K–12 Students

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NAEA-AAMD Research Study: Impact of Art Museum Programs on K–12 Students

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The National Art Education Association (NAEA) Museum Education Division and its partner, the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD), have completed a large-scale impact study investigating the question:
What are the benefits of facilitated single-visit art museum programs, guided by inquiry-based pedagogies, for students in Grades 4-6?
This study builds on, and significantly amplifies, the limited prior research that existed about the impact of art museum programs on participants. The goal has been to explore, on a large scale, how engaging directly with original works of art within the distinctive physical and social setting of art museums and through constructivist pedagogies, might lead to or heighten a range of student outcomes. The findings of this study are now available.

This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services MG-10-15-0079-15 and the Samuel H. Kress Foundation.
Read the Press Release
STUDY REPORTS
Summary Report and Discussion Technical Report
Appendix (coming soon)

STUDY SYMPOSIUM AND USER GUIDE

The results of this study will be presented at a Symposium at The Detroit Institute of Arts on Saturday, October 13, 2018. The Symposium will also be streamed live here.

After the symposium, a web-based Study User Guide will be published on this page for museum and education communities to share the value of and promote facilitated single-visit art museum programs, and apply the research results within their practice.
View Symposium Details
STUDY PUBLICATIONS

In addition to the study reports, this multiyear, national research project co-sponsored by NAEA and AAMD, has generated several other publications. These include summaries of the scope and plan of our project and reports from RK&A that outline their methodology and tools, along with their comprehensive literature review on the state of the field.

The web-based Study User Guide will be published on this page following the October 13 Symposium.
White Paper about the Research Initiative: Impact of Art Museum Programs on K-12 Students Summary of Results Survey of Single-visit K-12 Art Museum Programs Museum Site Selection
IN THE NEWS
Press Release
Emily Holtrop's Americans for the Arts blog on the project

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Please email comments or question to:

Emily Holtrop, Project Director, NAEA/AAMD Impact of Art Museum Programs on Students Research Initiative eholtrop@arteducators.org or emily.holtrop@cincyart.org

Meghan Pennisi, Project Manager, NAEA/AAMD Impact of Art Museum Programs on Students Research Initiative mpennisi@arteducators.org

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NAEA-AAMD Research Study: Impact of Art Museum Programs on K-12 Students

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The National Art Education Association (NAEA) Museum Education Division and its partner, the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD), have completed a large-scale impact study investigating the question: What are the benefits of facilitated single-visit art museum programs, guided by inquiry-based pedagogies, for students in Grades 4-6?

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FAST FACTS_NAEA AAMD Arts Impact User Guide

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A kit of fidgets as well as adult and child-sized noise-dampening earmuffs are available for your group upon request.

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SCMA’s collection is mostly digitized, and thousands of high-quality images are available for teaching. Images can be found in the museum's collection database.

Please contact Gina Hall, ghall@smith.edu, for assistance in locating images to support K-12 teaching.

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Poet Meg Day reading "Water Closet" poem

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Poet Meg Day reading "Water Closet" poem

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Listen to poet Meg Day read "Water Closet" written in response to SCMA's women's restroom designed by artist Ellen Driscoll. Day's poem appears in "The Map of Every Lilac Leaf," a book of poems published by SCMA in collaboration with the Boutelle-Day Poetry Center at Smith College.

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View of Atrium with sculpture Man in Abstract Suit by Viola Frey

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School groups may use the Atrium adjacent to the museum for indoor dining, or picnic on campus lawns. There are cafe tables with chairs for seating. Multi-stall restrooms are also adjacent to the space, in Hillyer Hall. Please wipe down tables and tidy up after using the space.

As part of your planning, you may wish to drop off boxes or bins of boxed lunches at the SCMA lobby/coatroom first, even if your group is planning to go to the Botanic Garden first and even if you plan to drop off students on College Lane, so you don't have to lug heavy bins across campus.

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This exhibition was researched, written and designed by students in the art history course, Luster and Gilt: Persian Painting at the Smith College Museum of Art. The class was held at the museum during Spring 2017.

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ABOUT FACE: A Student Installation of Islamic Art at the Smith College Museum of Art

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ABOUT FACE: A Student Installation of Islamic Art at the Smith College Museum of Art

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A Year Being an Art Detective - Brown Kennedy Fellowship 2020

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Case Studies on Provenance in SCMA's Asian Art collection

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Case Studies on Provenance in SCMA's Asian Art collection

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By Sophie Xiaofei Lei '20

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Collecting around the same time as the Reids, Jane Hill Told'59 and William H. Told, Jr. formed most of their collection in a way similar to the Reids: most of the objects from their collection were purchased from galleries and at Asian Art fairs in the United States. Some other objects were given by friends or acquired during travel, which illustrates a more personal and spontaneous approach to collecting Asian art. For example, this tiger was documented as a gift from a friend before 1996 when it was gifted to the museum in 2016. While it is understood that the exact dates of previous transactions and the origin of the objects might not be well documented on gifting occasions, this Okimono tiger presents certain difficulties for further investigation of its provenance. Therefore, it is important to return to the object itself for the answer.

Okimono, 置物, is a Japanese term for decorative objects. Typically found in a tokonoma, alcove in the reception room of the house, okimono is usually a small decorative sculpture depicting animals, mystical beast, deities, humans, fruits, plants, and sometimes even a scene from a story made from a wide range of materials from ivory to cast iron. Traditionally a Japanese art form, okimono was widely made to export to the west during the 20th century. As the Smith's okimono tiger was made during the same period, it is highly possible that it was created to meet western expectations of Asian art and purchased as a souvenir. The marks on the belly of the tiger, Atsuyoshi 厚義 and Maruki shachū seisaku まるき社中製作 help us identify the marker as Atsuyoshi and further confirm the object as a piece of export art produced by the Maruki company.

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Collecting around the same time as the Reids, Jane Hill Told'59 and William H. Told, Jr. formed most of their collection in a way similar to the Reids: most of the objects from their collection were purchased from galleries and at Asian Art fairs in the United States.

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Spotlight on: Contemporary Art at Smith, lower level

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Spotlight on: Contemporary Art at Smith, lower level

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Smith College has always collected contemporary art. At a time when students studied art mostly through reproductions, Smith’s first president, L. Clark Seelye, thought they should have access to original works of art made in their time. In 1879, just four years after Smith’s founding, he purchased the college’s first contemporary artwork, a painting by Thomas Eakins.

The artworks on view in this gallery continue this legacy. Almost all are recent additions to the collection. Here are paintings made with fingers or inkjet printers, as well as a sculpture whose reflective surface obscures the labor required to achieve and maintain its polish. Together, these artworks demonstrate some of the many ways artists today explore and respond to the world around them.

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Lilly, Post-Bacc Assistant Museum Educator

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Lilly, Post-Bacc Assistant Museum Educator

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Hello everyone! My name is Lilly Watson(they/them) and I am the Post-Baccalaureate Assistant Museum Educator here at SCMA. I recently graduated from Smith in the Spring of 2025 with a Studio Art major and a Museums concentration. I also worked as a Student Museum Educator at SCMA from Fall 2022-Spring 2025. I love doing drawing activities in the galleries with students and I have a personal affinity for contemporary and conceptual works, but I would love to talk to you and your students about any and all pieces in the gallery utilizing a variety of multi-modal engagements with the works. In my personal life, I enjoy drawing, collage, embroidery, and rhythm games.

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We encourage teachers to create nametags for their students to wear during their visit. You may also want to include students' pronouns on their nametags. This helps Student Museum Educators to engage students meaningfully, by name, and avoid mis-gendering students. Students who are called by name in their groups feel seen and heard, and it helps us to gently redirect students who may be understandably distracted by all the stimulation inherent to a museum visit.

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The Campus Center Café offers a wide variety of food and beverages. Order online—via the Grubhub Campus app*—or in person to enjoy dishes including gourmet pizzas prepared in a stone hearth oven, salads made to order, homemade soups, artisan sandwiches, and grilled foods, including vegan and vegetarian selections.

If you wish to bring a group larger than 10 to the cafe, please call 413-585- 2332 to check that they can accommodate your group. The cafe is very busy from September to May.

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Crafting Worlds: Japanese Decorative Arts from the 18th through 21st Centuries.  Carol T. Christ Asian Art Gallery, lower level

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Crafting Worlds: Japanese Decorative Arts from the 18th through 21st Centuries.  Carol T. Christ Asian Art Gallery, lower level

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Crafts are functional objects creatively made by skillful artisans using specialized knowledge and techniques. As our world increasingly embraces modes of making that are ever more detached from the human hand and mind, what is the significance of making crafts? This installation explores how artisans in Japan utilized materials and handcrafted techniques to forge social relationships and engage with the world around them. It features lacquerware, ceramics, bamboo baskets, and metalwork from the eighteenth- through twenty-first centuries, when Japan shifted from a feudal society to a modern nation.

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Crafts are functional objects creatively made by skillful artisans using specialized knowledge and techniques. As our world increasingly embraces modes of making that are ever more detached from the human hand and mind, what is the significance of making crafts?

This installation explores how artisans in Japan utilized materials and handcrafted techniques to forge social relationships and engage with the world around them. It features lacquerware, ceramics, bamboo baskets, and metalwork from the eighteenth- through twenty-first centuries, when Japan shifted from a feudal society to a modern nation. For centuries, artisans worked collaboratively in workshops and passed down their knowledge from generation to generation. Starting from the late 19th century, Japan officially opened up to the world and switched to a Western-style industrial system. Artisans created technically superb crafts, which became successful exports at the world's fairs and enhanced the prestige of the nation.

Not every artisan participated in the production of export art. In the early 20th century, artisans began to treat the production of crafts as a form of individual artistic expression. Some artisans created folk art with a simple and rustic aesthetic. Other artisans incorporated natural scenes into their works.

This installation is supported by the Nolen Endowed Fund for Asian Art Initiatives.

In this video, artist Gen Saratani (b.1980) explains the process of making lacquerware and demonstrates the technique of "hiramaki-e" (flat sprinkled picture) and "togidashi maki-e" (burnished down sprinkled picture). Saratani trained in the art of "urushi" (Japanese lacquer) and served as an apprentice under urushi masters Akira Taeda and his father Tomizo Saratani (b.1949). As a urushi master, Tomizo Saratani has a career in restoring export lacquerwares of the Meiji period and creating lacquer artworks. His "Gun'yu" (Fish swimming in a shoal) is on display as a part of "Crafting Worlds: Japanese Decorative Arts from the 18th through 21st Centuries" at SCMA.

The production of this video is supported by the Nolen Endowed Fund for Asian Art Initiatives. The video is filmed and produced by Massachusetts-based company Big Tree.

Image of Tomizo Saratani is courtesy of Hiroshi Yanagi Oriental Art. Image of the Saratani family store is courtesy of the International Netsuke Society Journal.

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Crafting Worlds: Japanese Decorative Arts from the 18th through 21st Centuries

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Crafts are functional objects creatively made by skillful artisans using specialized knowledge and techniques. As our world increasingly embraces modes of making that are ever more detached from the human hand and mind, what is the significance of making crafts?

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By Appointment: Cunningham Center for the Study of Works on Paper

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By Appointment: Cunningham Center for the Study of Works on Paper

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The Cunningham Study Center is the repository and classroom for works on paper in SCMA's Collection. Guided visits sometimes incorporate stops in the Center when appropriate as part of thematic explorations. You may request to see specific drawings, photographs, prints and collage works as part of the School Visit Request process, when filling out the form.

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How to Schedule a Class Visit

Faculty: To bring a group of college students to the Cunningham Study Center, visit our page for faculty.

PreK-12 Educators: Guided and self-guided museum visits are available for preK-12 groups. For more information, visit our page for preK-12 educators.

Individuals: To schedule a visit, call 413-585-2778 or email us at ccenter@smith.edu with the date and time when you prefer to visit.

Before your visit, you can search the collection online to select works you'd like to see. Email your list of up to 15 works of art per visit (include the object number, artist's name and title of each work) to ccenter@smith.edu.

If you can't find what you want, or you'd rather have our staff make selections for you, we'd be more than happy to help. Please email or call.

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The Cunningham Center for the Study of Prints, Drawings and Photographs houses SCMA's collection of more than 22,000 original works of art on paper, dating from the 15th century to the present day. Individuals and groups of up to 25 people are welcome to visit the Cunningham Study Center by appointment to study or simply enjoy the collection.

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"Radical Visions: The Art of Protest Posters" Exhibit on view through January 30 | Smith College Libraries, Floor G.

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"Radical Visions: The Art of Protest Posters" Exhibit on view through January 30 | Smith College Libraries, Floor G.

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Bold declarations, engaging artwork, and provocative imagery are at the heart of Radical Visions: The Art of Protest Posters, a new exhibit featuring social, political, and cultural protest posters throughout the 20th century.

Presented by the Smith Office for the Arts (SOFA), in collaboration with Smith College Special Collections and Libraries, the exhibit is displayed on the gallery wall located on the ground floor of Neilson Library and runs September 22, 2023 through January 30, 2024.

The exhibit celebrates the power of art as protest and the range of artistic forms protesters use to inspire social, political, and cultural change.These particular selections from Smith College Special Collections explore how artists and activists use images and text as affordable tactics to inform, persuade, and arouse emotions that give rise to social consciousness.

The exhibit also encourages the viewer to reflect on the myriad of ways art is used to inspire people and shape new futures.

Radical Visions: The Art of Protest Posters is co-curated by Leigh Fagin, Jean and David W. Wallace Foundation Director for the Office for the Arts and Sydney Nyguen, Exhibitions Coordinator in Special Collections. The exhibit can be found on the ground floor of Neilson Library and is the first-ever to be erected in the exhibition space.

Related Programs and Events

Creative Complaining with the Guerrilla Girls
Monday, October 2 ,2023 7-8 p.m.
In a presentation open to Smith College students, staff, and faculty, Guerrilla Girls will share their history and activist public art practice. Presented by the Wurtele Center for Leadership in partnership with the Smith Office for the Arts.

Aestheticize UR Activism with the Guerrilla Girls
Tuesday, October 3, 2023 4-6 p.m.
Create your own public art activist campaign at this workshop open only to Smith students. Participation limited to 30; registration required on the Smith Social Network.

Pop-Up Exhibit of Artwork by the Guerrilla Girls
Smith College Museum of Art
Tuesday, October 3, 2023 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

Printmaking Workshop with Emma Nishimura
Hillyer L08 (Printmaking Studio)
October 25-27, 2023
The annual Smith College Printmaking Workshop returns this year with visiting artist Emma Nishimura. For 40 years the Workshop has invited prominent artists to develop printmaking projects in Smith College studios while in conversation with Smith students, staff, faculty and the surrounding community. https://www.emmanishimura.com/

Multiplying Power: Image as Protest in Prints and Photographs
Smith College Museum of Art
Through January 2024
This installation displays a range of prints and photographs from the SCMA collection whose circulation documents and sparks social change.

Amplify Public Art Competition
This year, the Wurtele Center for Leadership is partnering with the Smith Office for the Arts (SOFA) and Neilson Library to sponsor the 2023-24 Amplify Public Art Competition. We are issuing a Call for Proposals (CFP) for a temporary public art project in the form of an installation to be displayed on the ground floor of Neilson Library in response to Radical Visions: The Art of Protest Posters. Read more about the process, criteria and deadlines .

Contact

For questions regarding the exhibit, contact Leigh Fagin, Director, Smith Office for the Arts.
For questions regarding the exhibit's posters or Special Collections, email specialcollections@smith.edu.

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"Radical Visions: The Art of Protest Posters" Exhibit on view through January 30 | Smith College Libraries

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Explore decades of artistic political expression on view in Neilson Library ground floor.

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Gina Hall, Educator for School and Family Programs

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Gina Hall, Educator for School and Family Programs

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Gina (she/her) has been a museum educator for 25+ years, beginning as a teen volunteer at the Holyoke Children's Museum. At the heart of Gina's practice is a sincere love of learning and museums and a drive to make them inclusive, accessible and joyful places that inspire curiosity, wonder and connection for people of all ages.

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by Diem Nguyen, '25

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Inspired by Chien-Chi Chang's China Town film, this website provides information on Asian immigration in the US & Asians at Smith College.

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Stacey, one of the SCMA Gallery Assistants

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Gallery Assistants are members of our visitor experience team posted in the galleries of the museum. You can recognize them by their red lanyards and Ask Me buttons. Gallery assistants can direct chaperones to the bathrooms, answer questions, and will lead the way to evacuate the galleries in case of an emergency. Gallery Assistants may remind students and chaperones about the rules of the museum, and may approach groups if they assess a potential of harm to art if students are standing too close or touch an artwork. They are here to keep everyone and everything safe!

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SCAVENGER HUNTS: color and animals (ENGLISH/SPANISH)

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SCAVENGER HUNTS: color and animals (ENGLISH/SPANISH)

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Scavenger hunts are available in the lobby of the museum, or print your own at home to bring to the museum.

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Full House, 1991. A. R.; Arthur Spiegelman; printed by Tim Sheesley 

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Talk Back: Art in Conversation, lower level

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Talk Back: Art in Conversation, lower level

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This space on the lower level of the Museum is dedicated to building dialogue around a work of art. When visiting, we invite you to contribute by writing, drawing, or posing a question—anything goes!

Return often to see how the conversation evolves.

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Museum educators collaborate with faculty to select works of art to exhibit in the Teaching Gallery. To maximize use by students and faculty, this flexible space can accommodate multiple courses. Works of art remain on view for extended periods of time with access during regular museum hours.