Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg

Explore the newly expanded and updated Art Museums, featuring more of the collection on view than ever. Discover colorful and whimsical folk art made by amateur artisans in the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum to objects that are useful as well as beautiful in The DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum. Plus, enjoy new amenities including the Museum Store open 10-6 and our Café open 11-3

Exhibits

A Congressional Curriculum - 1:30 pm Hennage Auditorium
What should a congressman study to become the best statesman possible? Join freshman congressman, James Madison, as he compiles a list of some of the greatest works of political theory and learn the valuable lessons they hold for an enlightened citizenry. (45 minutes)

Constitution Day Event - 6 pm on the Lawn of the Art Museums
Colonial Williamsburg celebrates the signing of the U.S. Constitution with a free event, "To Support and Defend," on the lawn in front of the Art Museums. Through music and the spoken word, the framework of our nation's government and the cherished founding document will be honored on its 235th anniversary. The program features a combined ensemble of members of the USAF Heritage of America Band, the USA Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) Band, the USN Fleet Forces Band, and Marine Corps musicians from The Navy School of Music, playing works by eminent American composers. In addition, the Colonial Williamsburg Fifes and Drums will perform. The program will feature Colonial Williamsburg interpreters Ron Carnegie as George Washington and Bryan Austin as James Madison. You may wish to bring a lawn chair. (75 minutes)

Restoring Williamsburg - Since the 1930’s, Colonial Williamsburg has been building its architectural collection. Now comprised of over 15,000 “architectural fragments”, it is an important and irreplaceable source of information on colonial American structures. Highlights include the contents of a rat’s nest found during restoration of Wetherburn’s Tavern, the original weathervane from the Magazine and a split-screen video showing the town as it appeared in 1930 and in 2021.

Artists on the Move: Portraits for a New Nation - On view are more than 30 portraits, some never before exhibited. Each portrait has a story to tell, whether it is the marriage of childhood sweethearts or an artist creating his own selfie. Discover a painting that was made for a President and one that was rescued from the trash.

Along with exhibitions of British masterworks, objects made and used in 18th-century Williamsburg, tall-case clocks, and maps promoting the new world.

From Forge and Furnace: A Celebration of Early American Iron - This exhibition highlights these decorative, yet useful, objects made in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Iron mining and iron production were established in the colonies almost as soon as settlers arrived. By the American Revolution, Virginia had several furnaces providing the iron that was made into firebacks, stoveplates and a myriad of household items like ladles, toasters, trivets and tammels.

The Art of Edward Hicks - This exhibition explores Hicks’ life and art through objects from the Foundation’s remarkable collection, home to the largest body of his works in the world. Along with the Peaceable Kingdoms are farm scenes from Hicks’ native Bucks County, Pennsylvania, natural wonders such as Niagara Falls, and depictions of notable historic events such as the Signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Along with exhibitions of American ship paintings, outdoor Folk Art, German toys,

Participation in Museum Day is open to any tax-exempt or governmental museum or cultural venue on a voluntary basis. Smithsonian magazine encourages museum visitation, but is not responsible for and does not endorse the content of the participating museums and cultural venues, and does not subsidize museums that participate.