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Welcome to the Albany Institute of History &
Art
The Albany Institute is dedicated to collecting, preserving, interpreting and promoting interest in the history, art, and culture of Albany and the Upper Hudson Valley. The museum achieves this mission through its collections, exhibitions, education programs, library, research projects, publications, and other programs offered to the general public.
One of America’s oldest museums, the Albany Institute of History & Art was founded in 1791, during the presidency of George Washington, making it older than the Louvre, the Smithsonian, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The museum's current
location, at 125 Washington Avenue, a block south of the
New York
State Capitol and the
Empire State Plaza and Convention Center, was dedicated in 1908 and
opened its first major exhibitions in 1909. In 1968, the museum
purchased the historic William Gorham Rice home and the Rice House Annex
and remodeled the buildings to house the administrative and curatorial
offices and the library collections. In 2001, the museum celebrated
completion of a state-of-the-art, glass-and-concrete atrium connecting
the Rice House and Annex to the original museum building, resulting in a
magnificent complex that added and enhanced space for the research
library, educational offices and studios, auditorium, and shop. Today,
the museum is a cultural nexus that provides comfortable and
invigorating spaces for exhibition displays, art classes, educational
workshops, distance learning, lectures, performances, cultural events,
social gatherings, and much more.
Through four centuries, the Albany Institute’s renowned collections and
exhibitions have comprised the definitive expression of the cultural,
historical, and artistic heritage of this historic region. From its
world-renowned
Hudson River School collection, to the famous
Albany Mummies, to the wide range of performances, lectures, and
festivals, to its outstanding educational and family programming, each
year this dynamic and engaging institution provides tens of thousands of
visitors of all ages and interests with a splendid museum experience.
View the Timesunion.com
Arts Cam:
Three Minutes Through the
Albany Institute of History & Art
Albany
Institute Board of Trustees
History of the Albany Institute
[.pdf]
© Albany Institute of History & Art 125 Washington Avenue Albany, NY 12210 Tel: 518.463.4478 E-mail: information@albanyinstitute.org