Admission:
General Museum admission is free. Admission may be charged for special blockbuster exhibitions.
Visitor info
Tours
The Charles W. Ireland Sculpture Garden
The striking Upper Plaza was designed for and exhibits the museum’s most monumental pieces of permanent sculpture.
Oscar’s at the Museum
Lunch Tuesday through Friday, 11am-2pm. Drop ins are welcome, or you may make a reservation. Oscar’s also hosts Sunday Brunch on select Sundays. Please check the Museum Calendar for dates.
Parking
Free parking is available in the Museum lot, located behind the Museum off Richard Arrington, Jr. Boulevard. Designated parking spaces are available for visitors with disabilities. Additional parking is available in nearby Boutwell Parking Deck and in public parking spaces along Ninth Avenue North. The Museum cannot validate parking in areas other than our attached lot. Parking Map
Mission
The mission of the Birmingham Museum of Art is to provide an unparalleled cultural and educational experience to a diverse community by collecting, presenting, interpreting, and preserving works of art of the highest quality.
About the Museum
History & Timeline
Founded in 1951, the Birmingham Museum of Art has one of the finest collections in the Southeast supported by a strong educational program designed to make the arts come alive for children and adults throughout the region. More than 25,000 objects represent a rich panorama of cultures, including Asian, European, American, African, Pre-Columbian, and Native American. Highlights include the Museum’s collection of Asian art, considered the finest and most comprehensive in the Southeast, and its collection of Vietnamese ceramics, one of the finest in the world; a remarkable Kress collection of Renaissance and Baroque paintings, sculpture, and decorative arts from the late 13th century to the 1750s; the collection of 18th century European decorative arts, which includes superior examples of English ceramics and French furniture; and the Museum’s world-renowned collection of Wedgwood, the largest outside of England.
The Collection
The Birmingham Museum of Art, one of the finest regional museums in the United States, houses a diverse collection of more than 26,000 paintings, sculpture, prints, drawings, and decorative arts dating from ancient to modern times. The collection presents a rich panorama of cultures, featuring the Museum’s extensive holdings of Asian, European, American, African, Pre-Columbian, and Native American art. The mission of the Birmingham Museum of Art is to provide an unparalleled cultural and educational experience to a diverse community by collecting, presenting, interpreting, and preserving works of art of the highest quality.
Exhibitions:
