Exhibitions
This exhibit features the complete collection of vintage hand-colored stone lithographs that comprised the first such printed ensemble in the United States. Thomas Doughty (1793 – 1856), a Philadelphia painter of the Hudson River School genre, turned his talents toward the publication of a monthly serial featuring avian and mammalian imagery that would appeal to American sportsmen. Accompanying these beautiful prints were natural history commentaries, sundry sporting accounts, and travel narratives. Lasting only from 1830 to 1833, the three volumes are rare, with the truncated third volume being exceedingly scarce. The exhibit contains all 54 printed colored lithographs.
Thomas Doughty created almost half of the images. Other enlisted artists included Titian Ramsay Peale, a talented artist-naturalist attached to the 1820 Stephen Long Expedition to the Great Plains, and Alexander Rider, a skillful avian draftsman. Most prints were adorned with a background landscape, which placed the animals in their natural habitat. The exhibit is richly complemented with historical commentary.
This exhibition will be on view from June 21st -September 14th
The Cabinet of Natural History
Our Very Nature
Rachelle Gardner-Roe
Our Very Nature is an interdisciplinary vision of the natural world through the vibrant perspective of artist Rachelle Gardner-Roe. This body of work blends fiber, sculpture, painting and poetry, all influenced by the artist's meditation practice. Based on the desire to reaffirm our sense of being of nature rather than separate from it, the works range from joyfully explosive to serenely devotional, while always inviting the viewer to keep looking.
This exhibition will be on view from May 9th - August 10th
Upcoming Exhibitions
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August 16th - November 2nd, 2025
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September 20th - November 2nd, 2025
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November 15th, 2025 - February 22nd, 2026
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November 15th, 2025 - January 4th, 2026
PERMANENT COLLECTION
One of the Midwest’s finest collections of 18th to 21st Century American Art
Discover selections from the over 3000+ piece collection
Wayne Thiebaud, Man Sitting-Back View, 1964, Oil on Canvas.
Emily Dubowski, Sunday Visit, 1972. Acrylic.
Rembrandt Peale, George Washington. Oil on Canvas.
Jane Freilicher, The Game on the Lawn, 1976. Oil on Canvas.
Frederick Judd Waugh, Ladies Having Tea, 1890. Oil on Canvas.
Mary Cassatt, Young Mother and Two Children, 1908.
L.E. “Gus” Schafer, Changin’ Horses, 1969. Bronze.
Jacob Lawrence, The 1920s…The Migrants Cast Their Ballots, 1974. Serigraph.
Alice Murphy, Umbrellas, 1937. Lithograph.
Thomas Hart Benton, Custer’s Last Stand, 1945. Oil on Canvas.
William James Glackens, Hillside with Olive Trees (Rue de Varenne), 1925. Oil on Canvas.
David Bates, Oleander, 1992. Acrylic and oil on canvas.
Tony Ramos, Mrs. Douglas tries to do the right thing, 1999. Oil on Canvas.
PAST EXHIBITIONS
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51st Annual Membership Exhibition: January 18 - February 23, 2025
Regional High School Exhibition: March 2 - April 13, 2025
Screen, Block, Plate, & Stone: Printmaking: March 1 – May 4, 2025
National Undergraduate Juried Exhibition: April 19 - June 15, 2025
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50th Annual Membership Exhibition: January 13 - April 14, 2024
Regional High School Exhibiton: February 25 - April 14, 2024National Undergraduate Jured Exhibition: April 19 - June 9, 2024
Regional Revelations: A Private Collection Showcase: April 20 - July 14, 2024
Small Wonders: Artwork by Debra Keirce, Denise Horne-Kaplan and Brenda Morgan: June 15 - September 15, 2024
Art of the Camera: Selections from the Hatten family collection: July 20 - September 15, 2024
The Architecture of St. Joseph: The Golden Age Revisited: July 20 – September 15, 2024
From the Canoe: Steve Snell: September 21 - November 3, 2024
Draw Closer: Ruthie Ingram: September 21 - November 3, 2024Byron Williamson & Deb Riley: New Works: November 16, 2024 - January 12, 2025
Big Ideas: Large Works from the Permanent Collection: November 16, 2024 - February 23, 2025
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Brave Work: Women and Their Contributions by Patricia Streeper: November 18, 2023 - January 7, 2024
Robert Quackenbush: Unearthed Fragments: November 18, 2023 – January 7, 2024
Kansas City Society for Contemporary Photography: September 23 - November 5, 2023
Then is Now: Works by Ani Hoover: September 23 – November 5, 2023
(Women) Artists from the Collection, 1800-2022: June 10 – September 17, 2023
7th Annual National Undergraduate Juried Exhibition: April 22 – June 4, 2023Family, Faith, Figures: Harry J. Oshiver: April 22 – June 4, 2023
2023 Regional High School Exhibition: February 26 – April 16, 2023
John Hulsey: “Transcendence – Truth in Nature”: February 25 to April 16, 2023
Jason Squires: Photography: November 25, 2022 – February 26, 2023
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Heinrich Toh: Never as it was: September 17 – November 6, 2022
Norman Akers: “Constructed Places: Works on Paper”: September 17- November 6, 2022
Ariel Bowman, Deanna Dikeman and Found Object Exhibitions- June 18- September 11, 2022
Stephen Johnson and Karen Matheis and Undergraduate Exhibitions- April 22- June 12, 2022
2022 Regional High School Exhibition- February 27- April 16, 2022
Returning/Belonging: Artwork by Benjamin Parks and Kathy Liao – January 14- April 16, 2022
48th Annual Membership Exhibition – January 15 – February 20, 2022
10th Annual MVIS Juried Exhibition – November 20, 2021 – January 9, 2022
Refracted Reality: The Work of Jim Cantrell – November 20, 2021 – January 9, 2022
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The Joe Show: Selections from the Gray Manufacturing Corporate Collection – September 18 – November 7, 2021
Missouri Art Now: A Bicentennial Celebration – September 18 – November 7, 2021
Peregrine Honig – June 19 – September 12, 2021
A Growing Collection: the Past 10 Years – June 19 – September 12, 2021
Agrarian Spirit in the Homestead Era: Artwork from the Moseman Collection of Agrarian Art – April 16 – June 6, 2021
5th Annual National Undergraduate Juried Exhibition – April 16 – June 6, 2021
2021 Regional High School Exhibition – February 27 – April 10, 2021
47th Annual Membership Exhibition – January 15 – February 21, 2021
Nocturnes: Derrick Breidenthal and Ben Weddle: Panoramics – January 15 – April 11, 2021
OKeoscapes by Douglas Shaw Elder – November 21, 2020 – January 10, 2021
Staff Favorites: Selections from the Permanent Collection – November 21, 2020 – January 10, 2021