Beginning mid-February 2022, the Wichita Art Museum revealed a new touring exhibit with a day of free activities perfect for art and jazz lovers of all ages. After the opening day, everyone can get in to see the new exhibit with a discount on the weekends (see below).
Photo: Wichita Art Museum “Walter Dorwin Teague, designer, Sparks-Withington Company, manufacturer, Jackson, Michigan, founded 1900, Sparton Bluebird Radio (Model 566), 1934. Wood, glass, and metal. 14 3/4 x 14 5/8 x 6 inches. Collection Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art, Denver. Courtesy of Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art, Denver. Photo by Wes Magyar”
Art Deco Exhibit Admission
Regular admission to the exhibition is $15 for adults; $10 for seniors, $8 for youth 5 to 17/students with/ID, which includes general museum admission.
But on Saturdays thereafter, through the exhibit’s close on May 29, 2022, admission to the exhibit is only $5 for seniors/adults and free for youth 5 to 17 and students w/ID.
About the Art Deco Exhibit at WAM
Here’s a bit more about the American Art Deco exhibit directly from the Wichita Art Museum:
“Art Deco is a wildly popular architecture and design movement from the 1920s and 1930s—the Roaring Twenties and Great Depression. The Wichita Art Museum will present an exhibition of 140+ iconic artworks—decorative arts, paintings, sculptures, and more—that epitomize this historical moment in American experience. This touring exhibition, co-organized by the Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha, Nebraska, and The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri, will be on view at WAM February 12 through May 29, 2022.
“American Art Deco: Designing for the People investigates this dynamic period when the county went through sharp economic, political, social as well as artistic transformation. From stylish decorative art objects to industrial design products, from compelling photographs to modern paintings, the range of artworks in this exhibition reflect the glamour of the 1920s and the devastation and escapism of the 1930s.
“Art Deco, short for arts décoratifs, took its name from the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes, held in Paris in 1925. The international exposition celebrated a new style characterized by geometric ornament, symmetry, stylization, and angularity, which developed globally with different variants. In the United States, it combined modern style with an embrace of materials used in industry and new technologies, influencing the design of everything from skyscrapers and automobiles to clothing and radios.”
Photo: Wichita Art Museum “Raymond Loewy, Hupmobile Hood Ornament, 1936–38. Hupp Motor Company, manufacturer, Detroit, Michigan, 1908–1941. Chromium-plated metal, 6 3/8 x 6 1/8 x 6 1/4 inches. Marshall V. Miller Collection”
Art Deco WAM events
Photo: Wichita Art Museum “John Henry Bradley Storrs, Ceres, c. 1928. Cast terracotta, nickel-plated, 20 1/4 x 4 3/4 x 3 7/8 inches. Wichita Art Museum, Museum purchase, Friends of the Wichita Art Museum, © Estate of John Storrs”
Docent Dialogues
Saturdays, April 30, May 28 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Want to learn more about the Art Deco insights and perspectives? Want to share your insights? This informal conversation time allows you to talk with WAM Docents about this iconic modern style on exhibition. The event is free, but non-members of the Wichita Art Museum will need to purchase American Art Deco exhibition tickets at the welcome desk to attend the tour. No reservation required.
Drop-in Tour of American Art Deco
Sundays, April 24, May 22 from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.
This guided tour by WAM’s trained docents will provide insight into the American Art Deco exhibition and offers more ways to learn about this influential movement in the history of art and architecture. The event is free, but non-members of the Wichita Art Museum will need to purchase American Art Deco exhibition tickets at the welcome desk to attend the tour. No reservation required.
Free American Art Deco Day
Saturday, May 7 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
WAM for FREE admission to all of the museum’s galleries, including the exhibition American Art Deco: Designing for the People, 1918–1939.
There’s a lot to experience at Wichita Art Museum! Here’s the admission details one more time:
Saturdays at the Art Museum, free
Additional $5 to see the Art Deco exhibit on Saturdays through May 29, 2022
Regular admission applies on all other days except Saturdays
Wichita Art Museum
1400 West Museum Boulevard
Wichita, KS 67203-3200
316-268-4921
