Permanent Collections
| Modern and Contemporary Art | ||
| 19th-Century American Art | ||
| European Art from the 15th – 19th Centuries | ||
| Art of West Africa | ||
| Art of Antiquity | ||
| Portraits | ||
| Japanese Art, Morrow Collection of Mexican Folk Art |
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.
Provenance Research and the Unlawful Appropriation of Objects during the Nazi Era
Between 1933 and 1945, the Nazi regime engaged in systemic looting, theft, confiscation, forceful appropriation, and destruction of cultural property that belonged to public and private institutions as well as individuals including victims of the Holocaust. The Mead Art Museum follows the guidelines established by the American Association of Museums (AAM) regarding ethical practices and provenance (history of ownership) research. The Mead participates in the Nazi-Era Provenance Internet Portal Project that provides a searchable registry of objects in U. S. museum collections that changed hands in Europe during the Nazi era. For additional information and links to provenance of objects in the collection, please visit www.nepip.org.