Introducing your kids to art is a great way to bond with them and help them understand the value art creates in our society. In Hartford, the Wadsworth Atheneum is one of the premier public art museums in the country. Open since 1842, it’s also the oldest continuously-operating one. Our Connecticut adoption agents love visiting here with our families on weekends. Some current exhibitions to consider checking out here include:

David Smith: Figures & Dwelling

David Smith (1906-1965) was an abstract sculpturist best known for his series of sculptures installed in natural settings. In 1940, Smith left New York City and relocated to Bolton Landing in Upstate New York. For the next 25 years, he added dozens of different styles of sculptures to the hillside fields of the area.

In this exhibit, located in the main entryway, you can view three of the objects created at Bolton Landing.

Smith’s Bolton Landing series of sculptures would eventually inspire Storm King – a 500-acre, large-scale sculpture park in the Hudson River Valley.

Herbert Ferber | Space in Tension

Herbert Ferber (1906-1991) was an American Abstract Expressionist sculptor and painter and a groundbreaking artist at the New York School. He is known as the founder of a movement of “sculpture as environment.” In 1961, he created one of the world’s first fully-immersive sculpture installations, which was showcased at the Whitney Museum of American Art.

At Space in Tension, you can view a collection of over 40 works of sculpture and painting by Ferber, covering his career from the 1940s until 1990. With this comprehensive collection, you’ll be able to watch as his style evolves over his career – with additions of surrealism, social realism, and expressionism.

Fine Prints and Drawings by Rembrandt and His Contemporaries

This exhibit showcases drawings, prints, and etchings from the Dutch Golden Age – mostly by Rembrandt and his students. This is the first showing of this exhibit in almost 40 years. Another recently conserved painting is on view – Daniel Proving the Innocence of Susanna by Gerbrand van den Eeckhout.

Mirror, Mirror

Mirrors and reflection became a popular trend in the early 1960s art scene. During this period, young artists began creating projects using common objects and industrial materials. The use of the mirror meant that the viewer became the subject.

The Mirror, Mirror collection features work completely drawn from the Wadsworth Atheneum’s permanent collection. Featured artists in this exhibition include:

  • Larry Bell
  • Sam Durant
  • Virgil Marti
  • Michelangelo Pistoletto
  • Lucas Samaras
  • James Seawright

Hartford Youth Art Renaissance

The Hartford Youth Art Renaissance displays artworks by Hartford students in an annual exhibition. All age groups of students are welcome here, from K-12. If your kids enjoy making art, they may enjoy submitting one of their works here.