The history of the Bowdoin College Museum of Art goes back to 1811, when James Bowdoin III endowed Bowdoin College and gave it his extensive art collection. The next year, the same collection went on display, making it one of the United States’ first art museums. Over the years, the collection outgrew its space and was moved into its beautiful neo-Renaissance building in 1894. Pause before entering to take a photo of one of the huge bronze lions flanking the entrance. Today, the museum has more than 20,000 paintings, sculptures and archaeological finds and forms one of the most important college museums in the country.
Enter through the refurbished entryway and follow the recommended route from the top down. On the top floor are Gilbert Stuart’s famous portraits of presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, hanging alongside other memorabilia of the early republic. Head to the antiquities section with its extensive collection of Assyrian, Greek, Roman and Byzantine objects. Take your time in the European section, where you can find not only a newly discovered piece by Fra Angelico, but numerous works from Old Masters to Picasso and Warhol.
Check the calendar for the list of rotating exhibits put on with co-operation from other museums, from contemporary exhibits on Soviet Russia to retrospectives on the Renaissance or the ancient world. Stay around or return in the evening, when Bowdoin faculty or students often conduct free lectures illuminating some of the works in the museum. On the second Friday of the month, the museum joins Art Walk Friday, with extended hours and a jubilant atmosphere.
Bowdoin College Museum of Art is open from Tuesday to Saturday from mid-morning until the end of the workday, with later hours on Thursdays. The museum opens at noon on Sundays and is closed on Mondays and national holidays. Entrance is free. Find the museum on the Bowdoin College quad, near the library. The museum is a 10-minute walk from Brunswick Station, which has train connections to other Maine locations. Use the free parking available in many lots throughout the campus.