Winslow Homer - American (1836-1910)
The Fisher Girl
Oil on canvas, 1894
Gift of George D. Pratt (Class of 1893)

The Mead Art Museum houses the art collection of Amherst College, over 16,000 works, beginning with the Assyrian reliefs that were acquired by the College in 1855. Established by funds bequeathed by William Rutherford Mead (Class of 1867), the museum occupies the original building opened in 1949 and renovated in 1999-2001.

Peter Paul Rubens
Charity Enlightening the World
Oil on panel
Museum purchase

The Mead’s superb collection of American art is considered one of the finest and most varied in an academic institution, ranging from portraits by Copley, to Hudson River School landscapes, to modern works by Robert Henri, George Bellows, and Frank Stella. European art includes major paintings by Peter Paul Rubens, Frans Snyders, Joshua Reynolds, Adolphe Bouguereau, and Claude Monet. Over 5,000 European and American prints, drawings and photographs are featured in temporary exhibitions. The art collection has grown and diversified in recent years, shaped by a global outlook and the generosity of alumni donors. New, internationally renowned collections provide distinction in Russian modernist art and West African sculpture, featured in permanent installations. With the recent addition of over 2,500 Japanese woodblock prints, the Mead ranks as one of the major collections of ukiyo-e in the country.

Sano di Pietro
The Adoration of the Child
Tempera on panel
Gift of the Samuel H. Kress Foundation

The Mead Art Museum exhibits highlights from the permanent collection in six galleries, and presents temporary shows on contemporary art, photography, and interdisciplinary subjects highlighted by loans from public and private collections. An accredited member of the American Association of Museums, the Mead participates in the consortium of the Five Colleges, Inc. as well as Museums10, a regional cultural collaboration.