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Muskegon Museum of Art, Muskegon

4.7

#2 of 6 in Museums in Muskegon

Art Museum · Hidden Gem · Museum

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History Brief

At his death in 1905, lumber baron Charles H. Hackley created, through a bequest to Muskegon Public Schools,

and the expendable trust fund to purchase “paintings of the best kind” for display in Hackley Library, which was owned

and operated by the School Board. When it became apparent that a true art collection needed a home of its own, the

Muskegon Board of Education decided to honor Charles Hackley and his gift by constructing an art gallery.

Construction began in 1911 and was completed in 1912. In 1979, ground was broken for a $1.6 million addition to

the Hackley Art Gallery, funded by the L.C. & Margaret Walker Foundation. Construction was completed in 1980

and with that, the museum’s name was changed from the Hackley Art Gallery to the Muskegon Museum of Art. As

part of the Museum’s 2012 centennial celebration, a capital campaign was launched to raise funds for the future

financial security of the Museum in anticipation of its separation from Muskegon Public Schools, which was

planned beginning in 2010 and was completed June 30, 2014. Over $7.5 million has been raised so far for this fund.

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Muskegon Museum of Art reviews

TripAdvisor traveler rating

98 reviews

Google

4.7

By chachamatina

Lovely! We enjoyed our brief visit to this museum. We came up to see the Dressing the Abbey exhibit which was really cool! It was laid out amongst some of the art on the walls beautifully. The gift...

Lovely! We enjoyed our brief visit to this museum. We came up to see the Dressing the Abbey exhibit which was really cool! It was laid out amongst some of the art on the walls beautifully. The gift... more »
By P4551RNwilliamm

I was surprised at the quality of the permanent collection. This is a small museum, but it has nice work by Edward Hopper, Whistler, and Pissaro. The contemporary art was interesting. The 19th C...

I was surprised at the quality of the permanent collection. This is a small museum, but it has nice work by Edward Hopper, Whistler, and Pissaro. The contemporary art was interesting. The 19th C... more »
By Chapara R

Was there for the Downton Abbey Exhibit, which was well organized. The exhibit was nicely organized and had information you can read as you move around. When we were there, it was not crowded which...

Was there for the Downton Abbey Exhibit, which was well organized. The exhibit was nicely organized and had information you can read as you move around. When we were there, it was not crowded which... more »

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Google

By Christina LeVey-Rowland

Yet another gem of Muskegon! A nice piece of history and culture right in the heart of downtown. The building itself is beautiful, and they have exhibits upstairs that change periodically. Today we saw Measure Twice the sculptures of Ted Lott and they were incredible. The gift shop is very nice featuring an array of beautiful items to commemorate your visit or just decorate your home. Every second Saturday of the month, the general admission for the museum is free, you would only have to pay to visit the special exhibit (if you wish, but you don't have to). However even if you do visit for free I would highly recommend making a donation to the museum to help them keep it beautiful, operational, and able to bring wonderful exhibits into Muskegon.

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By S M K

An excellent art institution in the heart of the revitalizing Muskegon city center. The exterior of the building has tons of detail and visual interest. The gift shop has unique and well created items by local artists. There are two large and two smaller exhibit galleries. The galleries are well curated and laid out. When I visited, there were specially marked pieces paired with poetry that provided an enhanced experience of the visual with the written word. Various diverse artist points of view are presented and explained through the accompanying text panels. The collections are well with the visit, while the special exhibits increase the drive even more interest.

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By Rita Endres

Great local museum. I own a mini golf course in town and loaned our putters for an indoor miniARTure course they did. Loved it! Just visited again for the Rembrandt display. So cool to see the detail in some original works. They even had magnifying glasses to use. There’s a cute gift shop that also has lattes and mochas available. ❤️☕️

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By Blushing Goddess Salon

I am from muskegon but live in GR, I came in to town to see the Tiffanii Massey installation not only was I impressed by that, but I was impressed to see the original oil painting of “ Tornado over Kansas”. I grew up in Muskegon my whole life and never knew this painting was there. Tiffany Masseys insulation was definitely a treat and reminded me of my teen years growing up in the 90s listening to my favorite hip-hop and R&B artist.. I look forward to seeing more work from her!

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By Andrew Hawes

What a great place to see some amazing works. We were fortunate enough to see Dressing the Abbey as well.

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