The Eastern Shore’s Portal to the Art World
At the Academy Art Museum, you can see world-class art free of charge, ranging from prints and paintings to sculpture and digital genres. For art lovers, it’s hard to envision a better experience than standing inches from a compelling piece, a communion between yourself and the artist without another soul around.
A 22,000-square-foot museum, the Academy Art Museum is housed in a historic schoolhouse in downtown Easton and is truly the Eastern Shore’s portal to the art world.
The famous philanthropic spirit of Talbot County has infused this space with sizable investments since 1958, leading to a stellar permanent art collection that includes Rembrandts and Rothkos. Its partnerships with North America’s greatest museums, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution, ensures that extraordinary works of art are frequently on loan here.
There’s also a dynamism to this space because the museum doesn’t just pay reverence to the past, but also embraces the future.
The Academy Art Museum regularly commissions work from internationally recognized artists such as Hoesy Corona, a Mexican American who identifies as a Queer Latinx, and who addresses cultural issues as diverse as climate change and gender identity through bold multidisciplinary installations. You can see the piece that he created specifically for the museum inside the new Atrium.
The museum’s Artist-in-Residence program provides a retreat for creators, like Baltimore-based Jackie Milad, who taps into her Honduran and Egyptian background to grapple with issues of identity, often through colorful work translated into textiles and on to paper. Best of all, the museum forges impactful relationships with the community through workshops, lectures and gatherings led by the visiting artists.
Although the museum regularly exhibits works by art world giants like James Turrell and Robert Rauschenberg, it also takes its mission as a community resource seriously.
Live events are offered nearly every weekend of the year, including showcases featuring regional artists, classes for adults and kids, piano concerts, dances, even improv comedy performances. Plus, there’s something of a hidden gem tucked into a quiet corner of the museum, a warm and welcoming library, where you can peruse hundreds of art books when you’re looking for a dose of inspiration.
The museum holds its Annual Craft Show each October showcasing over 60 juried artists from across the United States and covering most craft genres. The show stays fresh by inviting up to one third of its participants as first time exhibitors. The Academy also collaborates with the Plein Air Easton Competition and Festival, held in July, as a satellite gallery for exhibiting artist’s works for sale.
Academy Art Museum. Open for inspiration.
106 South Street in Easton
