Even if you are not conversant with the wide range of wildlife art you will be impressed with the variety of images the museum affords. The raison d'etre of the museum was laid out by the Board of Trustees in a letter to patrons and the public. The museum is unique among American art museums, distinguished by its mission and location. With collections of nearly 2,300 works of art, the museum strives to enrich and inspire public appreciation of fine art and man's relationship with nature by focusing its exhibitions and programs on wildlife. Sited on a butte in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the museum overlooks the 20,000-acre National Elk Refuge and is on access to the great Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks.
Wildlife art is one of man's earliest art forms, dating back to prehistoric cave paintings.
Its long existence in virtually every culture exemplifies man's vital relationship with nature, a relationship that has suffered in western civilization since the onset of the industrial revolution and the ensuing technological age. It is fitting that the museum preserves and interprets this art in one of the few remaining areas of the United States where native wildlife still roams abundantly and free. Our collections include European and American paintings, sculpture, and works on paper. Their strength is American wildlife art, which by its nature is inextricably linked to the Westward Movement. Explorer artists of the early nineteenth century documented the vast new landscapes and their inhabitants.