Our Mission
Home to a world-class collection of American art, the Addison Gallery, located on the campus of Phillips Academy in Andover, MA, presents an adventurous exhibition program, hosts a vital artist-in-residence program, and works collaboratively with students and faculty at the Academy and in neighboring communities. Through our ongoing query What is America?, the Addison seeks to engage with the history of American art and American experience—past, present, and future.
About Our Collection
Comprised of more than 25,000 works in all media—painting, sculpture, photography, drawings, prints, and decorative arts—from the 18th century to the present, the Addison Gallery’s collection of American art is one of the most important in the world.
The museum’s founding collection included major works by such prominent American artists as John Singleton Copley, Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer, Maurice Prendergast, John Singer Sargent, John Twachtman, and James McNeill Whistler.
In the nine decades since, aggressive purchasing and generous gifts have added works by such artists as Mark Bradford, Alexander Calder, Stuart Davis, Arthur Dove, Walker Evans, Robert Frank, Marsden Hartley, Hans Hofmann, Edward Hopper, Kerry James Marshall, Eadweard Muybridge, Georgia O’Keeffe, Jackson Pollock, Charles Sheeler, Lorna Simpson, John Sloan, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Frank Stella, Kara Walker, and Stanley Whitney.
Happy #WorldWaterDay! While we have many works in the collection that reference water in all its forms (solid, liquid, gas—look it up, I got an A- in 7th grade science), there’s one work that reigns supreme due to its aquatic properties—Paul Manship’s Venus Anadyomene fountain.
Want to learn more about the Addison’s iconic fountain? Join Ava Foley, Masconomet Regional High School class of 2022, to explore Venus Anadyomene by Paul Manship, on permanent view in the Addison’s rotunda.
Paul Manship (1885-1966). Venus Anadyomene, 1927. 28 5/8 x 22 inches. Marble. Addison Gallery of American of anonymous donor, Fountain restoration funded by Mary and Keith Kauppila, 1930.291
#paulmanship #carved #marble #venus #venusanadyomene #mythology #romanmythology #mythology #aphrodite #classicalart #artdeco #fountain #seafoam #washthatmanrightoutofmyhair #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
“The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.”—Hans Hofmann
Happy birthday, Hans Hofmann! The celebrated German-born American painter and teacher was born on this day in Weißenburg in Bayern, Germany.
In 1948, the Addison Gallery mounted the exhibition, “Hans Hofmann: Painter and Teacher.” Its didactic purpose was to illuminate the painting’s transition from realist figures and still life paintings to abstraction through the work of American artist Hans Hofmann. Developed in close collaboration between the Addison’s then Director Bartlett Hayes and the artist himself, the exhibition was groundbreaking— the first museum exhibition of the work of an Abstract Expressionist.
By this time Hofmann had earned a reputation as a leading practitioner of American abstract painting and as a significant teacher of his generation. Importantly, Phillips Academy teachers Maud and Patrick Morgan studied with Hofmann both in Germany and in the United States. The Morgans’ veneration of the artist as well as his reputation as both a painter and teacher made this exhibition a perfect fit for the Addison. Accompanying the exhibition was a now canonical catalogue of essays, Search for the Real.
Thanks to the Morgans’ generosity, Exaltment holds a special place in the history of the Addison and its teaching mission. Originally owned by the couple, the painting hung in their living room, which served as a gathering point for the many Phillips Academy art students and teachers. One such student was now renowned artist, Frank Stella (PA 1954) who has acknowledged the profound influence of Exaltment on his work.
Hans Hofmann (1880-1966). Exaltment, 1947. Oil on canvas. 59 3/4 x 47 3/4 inches. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, museum purchase, 1960.6
#hanshofmann #abex #abstractart #abstractexpressionism #abstractpainting #exaltment #maudmorgan #frankstella #searchforthereal #phillipsacademy #andover #teachingmuseum #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
Exciting new acquisition! The Addison recently received an incredible gift of nearly 50 photographs by the renowned American documentary photographer, Wayne Forest Miller.
A photographer of the human experience, Wayne Miller sought to “photograph mankind and explain man to man.” This ambition guided the prolific photographer throughout his career.
In World War II, Miller joined the navy and was assigned to Edward Steichen’s elite photographic Naval Aviation Unit. The photographs in this gift include images of U.S. naval soldiers aboard the SS Saratoga in the Pacific Theater in 1943 and women training in WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service aka U.S Naval Women’s Reserve). In September 1945, a month after the U.S. dropped the atomic bomb in Hiroshima, Miller was on the ground photographing the devastation there. Images show a Japanese soldier walking on a desolate lot where army barracks once stood and a badly burned victim lying on a mat.
After the war, Miller returned to his native Chicago and from 1946 to 1948, funded by two consecutive Guggenheim grants, he photographed Black communities in the South Side. He wanted to “know the people that I saw and to try to express how they were feeling about their daily lives and their families.” Capturing various aspects of both every day and milestone life events, Miller’s photographs show people at work, weddings, bars, and births as well as street scenes and sandlot baseball.
Miller photographed for LIFE magazine and National Geographic, worked with Steichen on the iconic The Family of Man exhibition, and joined Magnum in 1958, serving as its president from 1962 to 1968. This gift is the first work by the renowned photojournalist to enter the Addison’s collection. (Tessa Hite)
All works by Wayne Miller (1918-2013). All works are gelatin silver prints and were the gift of Jeanette Miller.
Girl “reading” Ebony Magazine, 1947
Women working on parts, 1943
Rabbits for sale, 1948
Puppy on ship, 1945
Mother and son, 1946
#waynemiller #magnumphotos #southside #chicago #wwii #ebony #blacklife #photojournalism #1940s #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
Join Addison Community Ambassador Jaden Chyu (PA 2023) to explore N.E.W.S. (North, East, West, South) by @judy.pfaff, currently on view in the exhibition Women and Abstraction: 1741–Now.
The Addison Community Ambassadors, the museum’s Phillips Academy student group, aims to create community at the Addison in conversation around responses to collections and exhibitions. Through group discussion, hands-on activities in the galleries and Museum Learning Center, and meetings with all levels of museum staff, Ambassadors learn about the Addison, the history of museums, and theories of teaching and learning, and then design interactive programming for all audiences.
Judy Pfaff, N.E.W.S. (North, East, West, South), 1988, 109 x 96 x 43 in., Painted steel, found objects, acrylic sheets, Museum purchase with support of Stephen C. Kaye (PA 1955), 2022.112
#judypfaff #contemporaryart #contemporarysculpture #mixedmedia #unconventionalmaterials #installation #controlledchaos #installationart #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
It’s Oscar night in the USA, baby!
I know that we’ve posted this image before and used it as an opportunity to lightly poke fun at Nicole Kidman’s former diminutive companion (the man lurking in the shadows in this photograph). After the backlash I recently received for gently ribbing Ellen DeGeneres for her demonstrably less than warm personality, I will not have anything else to say about Mr. Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (a nominee tonight for Top Gun: Maverick). I don’t want him coming to my house to jump on my couch and call me glib—𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣.
Celebrities are above reproach! Let’s go Tom! Xenu and I are rooting for you!
Jonathan Becker (born 1954). Nicole Kidman with Tom Cruise at Vanity Fair, Oscar Party, West Hollywood, 2000. Archival pigment print. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, purchased as the gift of Katherine D. and Stephen C. Sherrill (PA 1971, and P 2005, 2007, 2010), 2021.43
#jonathanbecker #nicolekidman #tomcruise #oscars #academyawards #amc #wecometothisplaceformagic #bestpicture #millenium #2000snostalgia #2000sfashion #afterparty #celebrityphotography #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
Shh! It’s a wig!
Toupee, you stay. Happy International Wig Day (oh boy)!
This is my hair, I don’t wear wigs.
Stud #1. John Smibert (1688-1751). William Lambert, 1734. Oil on canvas. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, museum purchase, 1958.55
Stud #2. Unidentified artist. The Reverend Samuel Treat, c. 1700-1707. Oil on canvas. Addison Gallery of Ame Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, gift of Carol P. Ganson, 2001.29
Stud #3. Gustavus Hesselius (1682-1755). Colonel Thomas Addison, c. 1720-27. Oil on canvas. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, gift of Mrs. Cornelius N. Bliss, 1944.77
#internationalwigday #wig #wigs #gohomewig #byewig #neneleakes #rhoa #lacefront #lacefrontwigs #rpdr #inches #colonialamerica #colonial #colonialart #earlyamerican #earlyamerica #colonizers #newengland #18thcentury #18thcenturyfashion #fulllacehumanhairwigs #americanart #portraiture #whitepeoplebelike #colonialamericanportraits #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
“I try to construct a picture in which shapes, spaces, colors, form a set of unique relationships, independent of any subject matter. At the same time I try to capture and translate the excitement and emotion aroused in me by the impact with the original idea.” —Milton Avery
Milton Avery, the great American modernist painter, was born on this day in 1885 in Altmar, New York.
Milton Avery (1885-1965). Sea Gulls—Gaspé, 1938. Oil on canvas. 30 x 40 inches. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, museum purchase, 1944.92
#miltonavery #gaspé #quebec #canada #pisces #piscesseason #fish #seagull #americanmodernism #modernist #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
Please join us in wishing @lavaughanjenkins_studio a very happy birthday! Lavaughan has been busy (that’s an understatement!) during his time at the Addison as our Edward E. Elson Artist-in-Residence over the past months and has made a profound impact on our student and adult audiences thanks to his kindness, generosity, and warmth. We’ve never seen the studio so alive! Do not miss our current installation of just some of the work made by Lavaughan during his time in Andover!
All works by Lavaughan Jenkins and are courtesy of the artist.
Australian Open, 2022. Oil on panel. 30 1/8 x 22 5/8 x 2 1/2 inches.
You’re why I love tomorrow, 2022. Oil on panel. 30 1/8 x 22 5/8 x 2 1/2 inches.
Morning sunrise, 2022. Oil on panel. 30 1/8 x 22 5/8 x 2 1/2 inches.
You kiss the same, 2022. Oil on panel. 30 1/8 x 22 5/8 x 2 1/2 inches.
#lavaughanjenkins #artistinresidence #artistresidency #teachingmuseum #contemporaryart #contemporarypainting #blackart #blackexcellence #serenawilliams #venuswilliams #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
Today, of course, is National Public Sleeping Day (sleeping—not speaking). While we don’t really know why the nation needs a day to celebrate sleeping in public, we’ll use this “holiday” as an excuse to share this great photograph by Robert Frank.
Did you know that the Addison has one of the largest public collection of Robert Frank’s now iconic photographs of Coney Island?
Robert Frank (1924-2019). Coney Island, Fourth of July, negative 1958, printed 1962. Gelatin silver print. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, gift of Katherine D. and Stephen C. Sherrill (PA 1971, and P 2005, 2007, 2010), 1998.116/ @andreafrankfoundation
#robertfrank #coneyisland #beach #streetphotography #documentaryphotography #brooklyn #newyorkcity #1950s #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
The first rule of Tile Club is: you do not talk about Tile Club.
On this National Tile Day (google it if you don’t believe me) we thought we’d share one of the more notable tiles in our collection—Winslow Homer’s Beach Scene, 1880. Homer was a dedicated member of the exclusive Tile Club, a convivial group of artists who gathered together weekly to socialize, dine, enjoy musical performances, and paint tiles. Other distinguished members of the Club included William Merritt Chase, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Edwin Austin Abbey, Julian Alden Weir, and John Twachtman.
Winslow Homer (1836-1910). Beach Scene, 1880. Glazed ceramic tile. 2 15/16 x 5 15/16 inches. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, gift of Mrs. Reginald Sturgis, 1949.23
#winslowhomer #tileclub #ceramictiles #tile #beach #1880 #decorativearts #seascape #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
Laissez les bons temps rouler! Happy Mardi Gras to all those who celebrate. Remember, don’t swallow the little baby Jesus in the king cake and don’t compromise your morals for plastic beads (or do, ça m’est égal). Otherwise, let the good times roll!
Peter Sekaer (1901-1950). Mardi Gras Spectators, New Orleans, c. 1936. Gelatin silver print. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, gift of Christina Sekaer and Elisabeth Sekaer Rothschild, 2000.32
#petersekaer #mardigras #mardigras2023 #fattuesday #neworleans #louisiana #cajun #kingcake #epiphany #lent #catholicism #jesus #babyjesus #cakejesus #beads #1930s #streetphotography #documentaryphotography #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
Thank you, thank you to the over 400 people who joined us on Saturday for the opening of our three spring exhibitions! We are so excited to be able to share these three incredible shows with all of you and hope that you’ll find the time to visit us soon.
Photographs by Kathy Tarantola (@kathytphotos).
#alisonelizabethtaylor #lavaughanjenkins #womenandabstraction #addisongalleryofamericanart #andover #whatisamerica @alisonelizabethtaylor @lavaughanjenkins_studio @judy.pfaff
