Returning from Europe where he had served from 1805 to 1808 as Thomas Jefferson's envoy to France and Spain, he brought back 70 paintings and a portfolio of Old Master drawings destined for the young school that bears his father s name. No two visits to the Bowdoin College Museum of Art are the same. Highlights from the permanent collection rotate regularly to create exciting new contexts and juxtapositions. Housed in the Walker Art Building and open year round, the Museum maintains an active program of at least 15 temporary exhibitions annually, often bringing works and artists to Maine from around the world. Together with gallery talks, tours, symposia, lectures and publications, the collections and exhibitions draw audiences from the region and beyond.
All programs are free and open to the public.