tacoma art museum

Went to see the Georgia O'Keeffe display and must admit it was a little disappointing. This was my first chance to view the new Art of the American West collection in the new Haub gallery and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. Absolutely worth the visit. Excellent mix of art, artists, murals and bronze. Five distinct galleries and spent more time there than I thought I would.Will definitely return.

TAM has always been an excellent art museum, featuring art from the northwest, glass art (including Dale Chihuly) and a wonderful collection of hand crafted jewelry. A new wing was recently added that features art from the Western US. It is extremely well done, especially when viewed with a guide. The lobby has been expanded and features a nice gift shop, a small cafe and a feature with supplies to make art. This is an attraction for all ages.

We spent a weekend in Tacoma and went to four museums – The LeMay American Car Musuem, The Glass Museum, The Washington History Museum and the Tacoma Museum of Art.We really enjoyed all four museums and recommend them all with a few caveats. For the Glass, History and Art Museum, you can take a pass for all three that will save you some money (even more with the various discounts such as AAA or Microsoft employee). That is what we choose to do and it worked out great.The Art Museum is a reasonable size space and takes no more than a couple of hours to see everything at a very leisurely pace. The admission price includes an audio guide which they proudly told us had recently been rated the third best celebrity narrated audio guide. Clint Eastwood does the narrating. The guide was easy to use and helpful. There is a special exhibit right now about Georgia O’Keefe. They have a few of her pieces and a small movie about her life. It is a nice addition and good chance to see some of this wonderful artist if you have not already done so.We would probably tell you that we are not particular fans of “Western Art.” That being said, we really did enjoy the collection at TAM. There are numerous paintings and some small statues and bronze pieces.There are lockers available at no charge which is a nice touch.From what we saw, this is a place for adults. We did not see much that would interest children unless you happen to have some art loving prodigy.

The TAM just opened a new wing to house a unbelievable collection of Western art from a private collection. This exhibit alone is worth the visit but along with the many rooms of Remington, Bierstadt, and local Washington artists is a comprehensive collection of Dale Chihuly and other glass artists works. With your admission you get a complimentary audio guide which was great. In the western collection Clint Eastwood gave the intro and the final commentary. In the Chihuly gallery Dale Chihuly himself spoke about his work and inspirations. I was blown away by this small museum. There is a very nice gift shop and cafe. The admissions person was friendly and helpful. What a wonderful place.

Even at its new size (twice the old size), you can still see everything in one visit, which is great. TAM gets and curates some excellent exhibits and has a good permanent collection - especially of glass. The new Western art collection has many things of interest even to those for whom this is not a principal category of interest.

There are several exhibits in the museum so something for everybody. We had gone to see the special show of Western art which was a very nice surprise. It was larger than expected and the quality was excellent. Along with the usual Remington and Russells, there were many new to us artists to discover.After the western show, we enjoyed several small galleries with very different types of art. Of course along with those there was a gallery full of Chihuly glass.We grew tired just about the time we ran out of galleries. I call that the right sized museum!

Went to it to see the Art of the American West Exhibit which was excellent. Not a big museum; we saw it all on the free 3rd Thursday of the month (5-8 pm). They have a room devoted to Chihuly glass that is better than at the Museum of Glass. Good art museum for kids: not to big to bore them and they will like the Art of the American West Exhibit.

TAM is a fantastic local museum with a number of fascinating exhibits. We especially enjoyed the extensive Western Art exhibit in the new wing. Free entrance the first weekend of the month for Bank of America credit/atm cardholders.

Just finished my second visit to the new Haub collection of Western Art. Quite amazing. I was surprised at the emotions I felt walking through the the sculptures and paintings. The free audio is also quite good, narrated in part by Clint Eastwood. I would recommend this exhibit,as well as the rest of this great museum. A treasure!

We visited the TAM mainly to see the newly acquired Western exhibit and gallery. It is a fantastic collection of paintings and sculpture depicting early times to now, and gives wonderful insight into the west as it was being settled, or conquered, depending on your point of view. We were told that only a portion of the collection was currently on display, which was almost overwhelming as is.We also saw an exhibit on jewelry as armor which was very interesting. There is a Georgia O'Keefe exhibit coming, and some others as well.I liked this museum for its approachable smallness. It was easy to take time to see all of the art within a manageble timeframe, and not feel rushed. The gift shop has a nice selection of merchandise, and there is a small cafe, library, and art studio for kids to use.The location downtown is in the middle of the University campus, with other restaurants and museums close by. I advise checking to see what exhibits are on display before visiting. We will definitely be back for the Georgia O'Keefe.

Thank you for visiting! We're glad you enjoyed your trip. Make sure to come by again in the future. We opened "Art of the American West: The Haub Family Collection" in mid November. This collection is featured in an entirely new wing of the museum which doubles our gallery space.

This is a small, enriched museum that allows people to immerse into art. Allow at least 4-6 hours. It is best to go on a quiet, rainy afternoon at non-peak times. I love the special "children's" events, library and craft rooms upstairs. Although this is a small museum, it is a great place to bring a date or to go solo. I confess that my favorite thing to do, after seeing the exhibit, is to go upstairs and do the fun, free art projects set up for children. Then, I go to the library and settle in with books. The librarians are excellent resources and the books are unique. I recommend joining for the great member events scheduled throughout the year. The restaurant is very small and seating somewhat cramped during typical meal times. Count on the restaurant for snacks, if needed. There are many excellent restaurants within walking distance.

We came here to see the Matika Wilbur Project 562 collection of Native American photographs. The exhibit is wonderful. The rest of the museum is interesting, but this exhibit is extraordinary.

It's worth visiting for the building alone. It is full of curves inside which lead you gently round. The art cannot compete with its big brother in Seattle but if you have an hour or two to spare it is a lovely place to visit.

We went to the Tacoma Art Museum primarily to view the Chihuly exhibit, but expanded the visit to include the entire museum. Interesting local art, pleasant experience, knowledgeable staff.