The Newark Museum of Art

{{Short description|Art museum in New Jersey, United States}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}

{{infobox museum

| name = The Newark Museum of Art

| logo = 80px

| image = Newark Museum sunny jeh.jpg

| caption = The Newark Museum of Art seen from Washington Park

| mapframe = yes

| mapframe-caption = Interactive fullscreen map

| mapframe-zoom = 12

| mapframe-marker = museum

| mapframe-wikidata = yes

| coordinates = {{WikidataCoord|display=it}}

| established = 1909

| location = 49 Washington St
Newark, New Jersey, U.S.

| director = Linda C. Harrison[http://www.newarkmuseum.org/SeniorStaff.html “Newark Museum Senior Staff”] Newark Museum website. Retrieved October 21, 2014.

| publictransit = Washington Park Station (Newark Light Rail)

| website = [http://www.newarkmuseumart.org newarkmuseumart.org]

| embedded = {{Infobox NRHP

| name = James Street Commons Historic District

| embed=yes

| nrhp_type = cp

| image = John-ballantine-house.jpg

| image_size=250

| caption = John Ballantine House

| added = January 9, 1978

| locmapin = USA New Jersey Essex County#New Jersey#USA

| nocat=yes

| refnum = 78001758{{NRISref|2009a}}

| designated_other1_name = New Jersey Register of Historic Places

| designated_other1_abbr = NJRHP

| designated_other1_link = New Jersey Register of Historic Places

| designated_other1_date = February 10, 1977

| designated_other1_number = 1275{{cite web | title=New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Essex County | url=http://www.state.nj.us/dep/hpo/1identify/lists/essex.pdf | publisher=New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - Historic Preservation Office | page=3 | date=January 10, 2010 | access-date=April 25, 2010 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327025729/http://www.state.nj.us/dep/hpo/1identify/lists/essex.pdf | archive-date=March 27, 2009 }}

| designated_other1_num_position = bottom

| designated_other1_color = #ffc94b

}}

}}

The Newark Museum of Art, formerly known as the Newark Museum, in Newark, New Jersey is the state's largest museum. It holds major collections of American art, decorative arts, contemporary art, and arts of Asia (including a large collection of Tibetan art), Africa, the Americas, and the ancient world. Its extensive collections of American art include works by Hiram Powers, Thomas Cole, John Singer Sargent, Albert Bierstadt, Frederick Church, Childe Hassam, Mary Cassatt, Edward Hopper, Georgia O'Keeffe, Joseph Stella, Tony Smith, and Frank Stella.

In addition to its extensive art collections, The Newark Museum of Art is dedicated to natural science. It includes the Dreyfuss Planetarium and the Victoria Hall of Science which highlights selections from the museum's 70,000 specimen Natural Science Collection. The Alice Ransom Dreyfuss Memorial Garden, located behind the museum, houses numerous works of contemporary sculpture and is the setting for community programs, concerts and performances. The garden is home to a 1784 old stone schoolhouse and the Newark Fire Museum.

The museum was founded in 1909 by librarian and reformer John Cotton Dana. The charter said that the purpose was "to establish in the City of Newark, New Jersey, a museum for the reception and exhibition of articles of art, science, history and technology, and for the encouragement of the study of the arts and sciences." The kernel or focus of the museum was a collection of Japanese prints, silks, and porcelains assembled by a Newark pharmacist.Alexander 1995, p. 390.

Originally located on the fourth floor of the Newark Public Library, the museum moved into its own purpose-built structure in the 1920s on Washington Park after a gift by Louis Bamberger. It was designed by Jarvis Hunt, who also designed Bamberger's flagship Newark store.[http://www.math.uic.edu/~tangora/JarvisHunt-list.html Jarvis Hunt Buildings - math.uic.edu - Retrieved July 13, 2008]Alexander 1995, p. 399. Since then, the museum has expanded several times, to the south into the red brick former YMCA and to the north into the 1885 Ballantine House, by a four-year, $23 million renovation.{{Cite web|url=http://www.visitnj.org/trip-idea/newark-museum|title=Newark Museum {{!}} VisitNJ.org|website=www.visitnj.org|language=en|access-date=2017-12-15}} In 1990, the museum expanded to the west into an existing acquired building. At that time much of the museum including the new addition, was redesigned by Michael Graves.

The museum had a mini-zoo with small animals for some twenty years, until August 2010.[http://www.newarkmuseum.org/MiniZoo.html The Mini Zoo] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124083905/http://www.newarkmuseum.org/MiniZoo.html |date=2010-11-24 }}, Newark Museum website.

For the security of climate-sensitive artwork, the museum closed its front entrance to the public in 1997 to minimize the effects of temperature and humidity changes. In February 2018, after extensive renovation and the construction of a ramp for disabled access, the front doors were reopened.{{Cite news|url=http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2017/05/after_20_years_newark_museum_to_reopen_its_main_en.html|title=After 20 years, Newark Museum to reopen its main entrance|work=NJ.com|access-date=2017-12-15|language=en-US}}

On November 6, 2019, the museum changed its name to "The Newark Museum of Art" to highlight the focus of the museum on its art collection which was ranked 12th in the country.{{cite news |last1=Mishkin |first1=Leah |title=110-year-old Newark Museum undergoes a name change |url=https://www.njtvonline.org/news/video/110-year-old-newark-museum-undergoes-a-name-change/ |access-date=7 November 2019 |work=NJTV |date=6 November 2019}} The Newark Black Film Festival was founded in conjunction with the museum and was formerly held every summer on the museum campus. The museum is open daily from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.{{Cite web|title=The Newark Museum of Art |url=https://penzu.com/public/16e1e831 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221112073737/https://penzu.com/public/16e1e831 |archive-date=2022-11-12 |access-date=2022-11-14 |website=penzu.com}}