The Museum is open Wednesday - Saturday 11 - 4, Sunday 12 - 4.
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Founded in 1912, the Newport Art Museum is one of the oldest continuously operating and most highly regarded art museums and schools of its kind in the country.
The Newport Art Museum’s collection consists of approximately 3,000 works of art in a range of media including works on paper (prints, drawings, watercolors, and photographs), paintings, sculptures, decorative arts, installation works, and textiles and is expanding to include new media. Concentrated on American art and contemporary art, the Museum’s collection includes works of art from the 18th century to present.
As a valued Newport Art Museum member you're entitled to free admission, are invited to members' only events and exhibition tours, receive discounts on Museum School class tuition and public program tickets, and will be supporting the Museum's mission to share a diversity of art and experiences to our Newport community and beyond.
By supporting the Newport Art Museum Annual Fund at any level, you help make a positive difference in the lives of many. Our exhibitions, public programs, education, and community outreach, which includes a diversity of artistic voices, would not be possible without you. Help the Newport Art Museum continue to spark reflection, inspiration, discovery and build lasting connections by making your tax-deductible contribution today. We thank you for believing in the transformative power of art and allowing us to make art accessible to all for generations to come. Help the Newport Art Museum continue to spark reflection, inspiration, discovery, and build connections by making your tax-deductible contribution TODAY!
Are you a business owner who is looking for new ways to engage and connect with local Newport customers on a year round basis? We have the perfect opportunity. Sponsor a Newport tradition - The Newport Art Museum - Make NAM part of your marketing plan in 2025. We have an array of events and exhibits to offer you. Our first exciting event is the 2025 Winter Speaker Series in its 97th Year.
The Shapes of Birds: Contemporary Art of the Middle East & North Africa Exhibition Catalogue $45.00 + $3 shipping Hard Cover Full Color 127 Pages
TO ORDER Email us at hello@newportartmuseum.org
Over the past few decades, the Middle East and North Africa have experienced immense political, ideological, and sociological changes. In 2010, the world watched as the Tunisian Revolution became the “Arab Spring.” With the use of social media, activists and protestors organized protests, resisted their governments, and made the world aware of crimes against humanity. In the art world, recent years have brought an unprecedented number of exhibitions devoted to Islamic art and art of the “Arab World and Iran” or the “Middle East.” Museum initiatives, collectors, foundations, and art fairs have also led to new patronage and audiences for Middle Eastern art and have stimulated the increased international interest in art of the Middle East and North Africa.
Mohamad Hafez, “Baggage Series #4,” Plaster, paint, antique suitcase, found objects, rigid foam, 30 x 30 x 48 inches, Courtesy of the artist.
Borrowing its title from a line in the poem “A Lesson in Drawing” by Syrian writer Nizar Qabbani, “The Shapes of Birds” showcases the work of contemporary artists from, or with roots in, the Middle East and North Africa. Working in a wide array of media—sculpture, installation, video, photography, painting, and illustration—the artists in this show both embrace older artistic traditions while exploring new media, ideas, and technologies. As a title, “Shapes of Birds” evokes Qabbani’s poem about memory, loss, disconnection, and creativity. It also speaks to the broader themes of migration—the migration of people and ideas. Though from different countries, and with different stories, the artists in this exhibition create works that deal with identity, history, tradition, memory, and renewal.
Participating Artists: Adel Abidin, Faig Ahmed, Samira Alikhanzadeh, Dana Al Jouder, Zeina Barakeh, Gohar Dashti, Minoo Emami, Shadi Ghadirian, Mohamad Hafez, Pouran Jinchi, Arghavan Khosravi, Basim Magdy, Rania Matar, Azita Moradkhani, Youssef Nabil, Saman Sajasi, Larissa Sansour, Hadieh Shafie, and Patricia Sarrafian Ward.
Top Image: Arghavan Khosravi, Let Me Hold You Tight, 2017, Acrylic and inkjet print (of scanned images of an Iranian bank note) on paper, 41 x 21 inches. Lent by Marilyn Charlat Dix and David Ragozin. Image Courtesy of the artist and Fridman Gallery, NY.
The Newport Art Museum is grateful to U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management for their support of the fall exhibitions.
Hadieh Shafie, Saayeha 3, 2016, Rolled paper containing text, ink, and acrylic, Courtesy of the artist.
Gohar Dashti, Home, 2017, Archival inkjet print, Courtesy of the artist, Robert Klein Gallery, Boston, and Azita Bina Seibel.
Youssef Nabil, I Saved My Belly Dancer, 2015 (Stills), Digital color video, with sound, 12 minutes, Courtesy of the artist and Galerie Nathalie Obadia, Paris.