Engaging Experiences for All Ages

From Family Free Days, to tours designed with families in mind, to drop-in art making for all ages, there is something for everyone at the Albany Institute.

Upcoming Family Events

3:00pm–5:00pm Free with admission.* Young Artists Lab is a weekly drop-in program for children and teenagers to express their creativity through inquiry and artmaking. Each week, participants will be given a critical thinking prompt and a variety of materials and tools to create artwork based upon the exhibitions on view. This program is led by local teens and emphasizes open-ended creativity. *Young Artists Lab is an initiative of the Albany Institute of History & Art's Free Summer Admission Program: children 12 and under plus one accompanying adult caretaker received free museum admission from July 1 to August 31, 2026. Generously supported by the Carl E. Touhey Foundation and Opalka Family Philanthropies, with additional support from Wallace Altes, Eileen Howe Bird, Mary Ellen and Anders Tomson, and Capital Bank.

11:00am–11:45am Enrich your experience of our current exhibitions through an insightful docent-led tour of the galleries. Docent tours are an excellent way to learn more about the artworks and objects on display, in addition to the stories they tell. Interaction and questions are encouraged and visitors of all ages are welcome. The tour is free with museum admission, no registration required. Please meet in the museum atrium main level near the admission desk before the tour begins.

12:00pm–4:00pm Art for All is free with museum admission every Saturday from 12–4PM. All ages are welcome to participate. Enjoy your visit to the museum and explore your artistic side with a hands-on project inspired by the museum's exhibitions and collections. Inspired by Your Friend, Frederic E. Church, participants will create their own cartes-de-visite. In the 1860s and 1870s, small photograph cards were commonly traded among friends and visitors. Albums filled with cartes-de-visite were commonly displayed in Victorian parlors. Participants will draw self-portraits on cardstock, then decorate a custom felt album for their cartes-de-visite.   Image: Erastus Dow Palmer (1817–1904), Thompson Gallery, Albany, New York, 1868, carte-de-visite. Albany Institute of History & Art, Mary Palmer Calverley Byrne-Ivy Papers, C500, B2, F41  

Calling all young artists ages six through twelve! Join us at the Albany Institute for fun, hands-on activities led by our museum educators. Prepare to learn new things, experiment with new ideas and connect with new people. Throughout summer breaks, we will explore the galleries at the Albany Institute and create our own works of art inspired by the exhibitions and collection. Artful Mornings are designed for children ages 9–12 and 6–8.