Press
Our communications team has everything you need to know about the Barnes, including press releases, media kits, and the latest news coverage.
The Barnes Foundation is a nonprofit cultural and educational institution that shares its unparalleled art collection with the public, organizes special exhibitions, and presents programming that fosters new ways of thinking about human creativity.
Barnes West Announces Artists Selected for Third Annual Everyday Places Artist Partnerships
The Barnes Foundation—through its collaborative initiative with community organizations in West Philadelphia, Barnes West—has announced four West Philadelphia–based social-impact artists who have been selected to participate in the third annual Everyday Places Artist Partnerships initiative: Elicia Epstein, Isaiah Reese, Meghan Tranauskas, and Pili X.
The Barnes Foundation Announces “The Barnes Then and Now: Dialogues on Education, Installation, and Social Justice”
The Barnes Foundation announces the publication of The Barnes Then and Now: Dialogues on Education, Installation, and Social Justice, a new collection of essays and contemporary conversations exploring how the Barnes has evolved in the 100 years since its founding, with a special focus on its unconventional art installation and mission rooted in progressive education and social justice.
The Barnes Foundation Granted Permission to Lend Paintings from Its Collection to Temporary Exhibitions to Advance Educational Mission
The Barnes Foundation’s Board of Trustees has announced that the Barnes has received permission from the Orphans’ Court of Montgomery County to lend paintings from its collection galleries on a limited basis to temporary exhibitions to advance the institution’s educational mission. The Court stated in its ruling that making such loans today is in keeping with Dr. Barnes’ stated mission “to promot[e] the advancement of education and appreciation of the fine arts.” Dr. Barnes selectively made loans of works in the collection during his lifetime.
The Barnes Foundation Joins with Philadelphia Cultural Organizations to Present Third Annual Early Learner Summer Pods
The Barnes Foundation has announced Early Learner Summer Pods, a citywide effort realized with six other cultural organizations in Philadelphia, offering summer activities for children ages five and under living in underserved communities. Made possible with support from the William Penn Foundation, Early Learner Summer Pods is taking place over six weeks, through August 19, 2023, and is expected to engage more than 1,000 early learners and their caregivers through play, art, science, nature, and stories.
Thom Collins, Neubauer Family Executive Director and President of the Barnes Foundation, today announced the appointment of Maryanne Murphy as the Barnes’s new Chief Financial Officer. A financial and operating officer with over 30 years of experience bringing processes and efficiencies to organizations to position them for stable growth, Murphy most recently served as Chief Financial and Operations Officer at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA).
The Barnes Foundation & Mural Arts Philadelphia Present “Through My I: Art from SCI: Phoenix”
This summer, the Barnes Foundation and Mural Arts Philadelphia present Through My I: Art from SCI: Phoenix, an exhibition of original artwork created by artists at State Correctional Institute Phoenix, southeast Pennsylvania’s maximum-security prison for men. Free with general admission to the Barnes, Through My I will be on view in the first-floor gallery classroom from July 14 through August 21, 2023.
In fall 2023, the Barnes Foundation will present Marie Laurencin: Sapphic Paris, the first major US exhibition dedicated to French artist Marie Laurencin in over 30 years. Co-curated by Simonetta Fraquelli, consulting curator for the Barnes; and Cindy Kang, curator at the Barnes, this exhibition explores Laurencin’s career, from her self-portraits to her collaborative decorative projects; from her early cubist paintings to her signature works—feminine and discreetly queer—that defined 1920s Paris.
The Barnes Announces Sixth Annual Barnes on the Block with Mural Arts Philadelphia & AFROTAINO
The Barnes Foundation announces the sixth annual Barnes on the Block, in collaboration with Mural Arts Philadelphia and AFROTAINO, on Sunday, July 16, 11 am–5 pm. Barnes on the Block with Mural Arts Philadelphia and AFROTAINO is presented through PNC Arts Alive. Taking place on the grounds of the Barnes Foundation, Barnes on the Block is a free block party that encourages neighbors to connect through various forms of creativity.
Following a large-scale, multi-institutional research project, the Institute for Learning Innovation and a consortium of 11 museums across the United States have announced the results of a new study designed to define and measure the value of museums—how they contribute to the overall well-being of visitors—in an empirical, verifiable, and monetizable way. The Value of Museums Study was unveiled at the 2023 American Alliance of Museums Annual Meeting in Denver on Friday, May 19.