Museum of Fine Arts

I’ve wanted to visit this museum for a while but the exhibit In Caravaggio’s Light featuring so much baroque art finally drew me in. The special exhibit area is very nice, spacious, and pretty much what you’d expect for an art museum. The permanent collection area is a bit dated and could probably use some renovations. Still, it was a pleasant experience for myself and my guests who were impressed by the special exhibit. We spent around two hours here and probably could’ve spent more if we weren’t concerned about public parking. Speaking of which the area the museum is located in as quite amazing and felt safe and upscale. Traffic could be a problem during peak times as the pier is nearby. Go to this area and just spend the day enjoying it all. Oh and that is definitely one of the nicest gift stores I’ve seen. Yes I added my own special commentary to the pictures I took.

Stunning art and incredibly curated displays! Took about 4 hours to view everything and each step, sight and word read was worth every minute. This stunning exhibit is worth more than words can say! Do make time to check this wonderful museum out.

Many thanks to the museum and, of course, to tour guide Natalia Velez for a wonderful tour in Russian of the Longhi collection! 👏👏👏👏 The narrative was rich, fascinating, and full of interesting facts. Time flew by, and we were left with the warmest of impressions. A very inspiring experience! We look forward to new advances and projects!

My wife and I went on an excursion conducted by Natilie Velez in Russian. It was wonderful! Natalie knows her subject perfectly. I am very glad that the museum management decided to make thematic projects in different languages. I am sure that such events will expand the museum's audience and cause additional interest in history and art. We will be looking forward to another meeting!

The galleries and exhibits are wonderful. Prices in the cafe on contrary are very expensive, $25 for a plain croissant, 1 slice of cake and espresso. Also the strange tacky, very large painting of the basketball player or whoever that is, in the middle of the main hall with old school classical paintings is totally unnecessary…out of place, kills the atmosphere of the room….

I really enjoy coming to this museum. You could spend 2-3 hours in here. They do need to buy better merchandise in their gift shop that is geared towards the artwork they have.

First time visiting, and it did not disappoint. Beautiful museum! I went to specifically see the current kimono exhibit before it over, and it was breathtaking! They also offer a military discount. I'm looking forward to returning to other exhibits and events.

Loved our visit! This was our first time touring the museum and it was a great find. We just happened to see the poster advertising the kimono exhibit while walking down the pier, and decided to go. I'm glad we did! The kimonos were amazing and I learned so much about their design and meaning of some of the finer details. The rest of the museum was great to see too. I did not expect to see a Monet or Georgia O'Keefe! This is a great place to pop in if you're downtown. I look forward to seeing future special exhibits.

The Museum of Fine Arts seriously delivered! The European Art Gallery was my highlight, it's a must-see for anyone wanting to inject a little culture and inspiration into their day. Totally worth a visit!

Well curated museum. We were a little disappointed that there were only 2 actual paintings by Caravaggio, but still an excellent exhibition Parking is a challenge.

Went to see the Art in Bloom exhibit which was really well done. The fragrance was wonderful. Plus it gave a chance to see what the museum had to offer. The permanent collection spans a wide range- from ancient African sculpture to post modern art. The opposite side of the museum had a kimono exhibit during my visit. It wasn't my personal interest, but I think they did well balancing the permanent and rotating spaces.

Super friendly and helpful staff, very calm, cool, and peaceful atmosphere. Gorgeous art!!! I am very very happy I got to see the visiting exhibit on Kimonos! This is a very very beautiful and well kept museum full of history and beauty :)

What is ever bad about the marvels of art and creation: music, dance, painting, sculpture, film, poetry, the written word of all forms. the creative expression of humans in the form of art reaches angelic levels. It can and should be enjoyed, absorbed & amplified to higher frequencies by all.

This is a nice place close to saint pete pier. It has a nice collection that include ancient to modern art. They also have 2 gardens, and a coffee area which is very convenient. I couldn't try any dessert this time but all looked amazing.

This is a nice local museum, good for a visit on a bad weather day. We went when there was an Audubon exhibit, and that was very nice. Those bird pictures are so amazingly full of life! The permanent colllection is... okay. They do have a Georgia O'Keefe red poppy, and they have a range of pieces ranging from ancient Greek and Roman pottery, 18th c French furniture, minor Impressionist paintings, and some modern stuff. The museum is reasonably kid friendly. My 7 year old enjoyed her scavenger hunt and getting to pick an item from the "treasure chest" afterwards. She LOVED the Audubon-inspired coloring pages and table. These activities kept her distracted enough for me to be able to enjoy the museum with a modicum of peace. Parking on Beach is always a pain, but if you go early (before the lunch rush), it's not so bad finding a metered spot. Two hours is more than enough for the museum.

We enjoyed our time spent at the MoFA. We spent about two hours walking around enjoying the exhibits. The museum has a variety of art on display. As well as an on-site cafe. It was a nice time and we would recommend to our friends and family.

I absolutely adore this museum! It's my comfort place; it's never too crowded, and there's an awesome mix of indoor and outdoor spaces. The exhibits also change out frequently enough that you're almost always guaranteed to see something new; it's also consistent enough so that your favorite pieces will always be there for a while. 11/10 check it out if you have time!

Outstanding world class museum recently renovated so everything looks so good. The art and the setting are incredible. There is a nice cafe in the lobby. Plan 2 hours and the guided tour is fantastic, thanks Frank. Right in downtown on the water and near the Dali Museum, another must see.

Visited on a December weekday and had a great time! The exhibit spaces had plenty of room for visiting exhibitions. And the "regular" museum had plenty of interesting pieces throughout. My 3 year old enjoyed the outdoor courtyard in the middle too. Excited to go back again sometime. And for the locals, this museum can be visited for free with a museum pass from the Pinellas County Libraries so check that out!

Stopped by the museum during their $10 Thursday evening hours. We checked out the Baroque exhibit and some of their main exhibit rooms. The collection is nice and the curator captions were useful, but the experience didn't feel super polished. I spotted a typo on one of the captions (loose for lose).

After some successful medical tests, we decided to celebrate with Fine Arts. We had an amazing time here, with the creativity and positive energy flowing! They had an incredible exhibit of Japanese Origami and we got to try our hand at making multiple pieces! My wife, Tina, is far more talented than I but she was patient as we made multiple Origami swans. Life is good with Fine Art!

Fun museum on free museum day! They have an origami exhibit. Very cool! The rest of the artwork, sculptures, and paintings were also beautiful. They had a fun sculpture garden too!

A friend blessed me with a trip to St. Petersburg's MOFA, and I am so thankful she did! We came on a Friday afternoon, no one was there besides the docents and one or 2 other small groups. A lovely docent named Susan, who's worked there for 8 years walked with me and chatted with me about the art works I was looking at. She challenged my 30 year repressed art school learning and I am happy to say that my brain is good at pulling up old info. That education resurfaced and I remembered how much I love art! I want to go back now with my mom because there is an American Quilting expo (September/October 2021)

We enjoyed our visit here. The collection is broad, going from ancient works up to contemporary ones. There also is a lovely sculpture garden. The museum has 3 works by Georgia O'Keefe on display, including one of her poppy paintings. There was also a Claude Monet. It is one of his paintings of the Parliament in heavy fog. I also appreciated that there was a significant level of diversity in the collection. This included a work by Elizabeth Catlett, who I have great interest in.

The art inside the Museum of Fine Arts is so beautiful. Being interested in art myself, I notice the little things that really make me like this place. It being in the heart of St. Pete and having such beautiful architecture only makes the experience that much better!

A very enjoyable museum! So much to look at in regards to sculptures and art. I happened to go when they had an impressive exhibit featuring a lot of bugs and taxidermy which were absolutely stunning to look at. Is it the biggest curated museum I've been to? No. But did it have one of the cooler, more memorable exhibits that I've seen? Absolutely. I would love to go back when some other things travel through.

My closet geek loves a good museum from time to time when local and I try to throw one in while traveling as well. I had been wanting to visit the Fine Arts for a long time but just never seemed to have gotten around to it. Finally, I get my chance. While there are "it goes without saying" rules at museums, like no touching, flash photography, etc... they also have signs up to remind people. No problem... what I did have a problem with is as my friend and I were looking at some paintings, I pointed my finger to an area to look at for all the details... POINTED, did not touch! One of the workers/volunteers just about freaked out on me and when I looked at him and calmly said "Sir, I was NOT touching it and still about 4 inches away even with my finger", his response in a rude tone was "well, you are making ME nervous." Well, that is all good but I wasn't breaking any rules and there is always a polite way of relaying a message to people or in this situation, a reminder. If you get THAT nervous to be rude to someone then maybe this isn't the job for you. After that, he literally followed my friend and I around to every piece of art that we stopped at and was only about 3 feet away from us the whole time. That is unacceptable and borderline harassment. I am not a child and literally did nothing wrong and shouldn't he have also been overseeing that other museum patrons vs just us? They could have been touching the art but he was too focused on us. Even when we left his area to visit the other parts of the museum, he walked up to the next worker/volunteer and must have told him to watch us because he too then started to follow us around his area. If it wasn't for my love and appreciation of art, I most likely wouldn't go back but I also know that he most likely will not be there when I do return. That was also why I didn't ask for management during our visit either. Hopefully after my next visit I'll be able to update this review to give it more stars, right now it is based off the experience of the visit which sadly overshadows the beautiful artwork there on display.

We are so lucky to have such a nice well funded art museum right here in st pete. I'm from dc so having to pay for museums is a culture shock but with student discounts it's not too bad. I try to stop by every time they have a new exhibit! Yea

We came here with free admission on the Annual Smithsonian Museum Day. We've been here several times, and what's enjoyable are the periodic exhibits from other museums that are shared here. This time, there was an Origami exhibition, and it was way more advanced than the Origami animals I made when I was young. The museum does have some impressive Mexican, Greek and Ancient art statues and sculptures, and a smattering of paintings, but it isn't by any means, a big league museum, and quite frankly, it was free for me, so I'm not complaining.

Smart chronological arrangement of the exhibits with a wide breadth of pieces. We lived chatting with a docent and touring the permanent collection as well as the temporary exhibitions.

Nice collection, friendly staff. Another reason to visit St. Pete. We think restaurants and yacht basin but don't miss the museum, particularly on a hot day.

My boyfriend and I visited the museum last Sunday, had no idea but Bank of America card holders have free admission to the museum on the first Sunday of the month - great perk! The exhibits were great, perfect way to spend a Sunday!

A fantastic Museum, wonderful collection in a very charming atmosphere. Well curated bookstore, with loads of interesting little finds. We were lucky enough to see the jean schlumberger exhibit, which was a treat! Become a member for great community of benefits and a discount at the bookstore. Very sweet staff, make an afternoon of it--don't sleep on the cafe.

The "earth" without "art" is just "eh". This is a delightful medium-sized museum with a permanent collection spanning many countries and centuries. In addition, there will probably be engaging special exhibitions on display (in the new wing) when you visit. Don't rush through and hurry off to another attraction. Allow enough time to really look and get intimate with a few works that move you. You will reap the rewards long after you leave the museum. "He" without "art" has no "heart".

I have been to museum of fine art (MFA) many time. Most of time is about the concert they hold every month. I almost familiar with their art they have display. Now I am go to MFA only for special event. This time they have a very unique guitar player from Europe. He is very talented. Win many award. Hand has lighting speed. I would said you may want to check on the program every month from MFA guitar festival. Check their line up. This month they also has special guitar display from local collector. Some guitar is very old and shape that I not recognize. Other their special exhibition. Their regular collect of the museum include some impression artist that I know from French - Claude Monet. He has two painting in the MFA for permanent display.

Great little museum right along the waterfront in St. Petersburg. They have a very up-to-date webpage which tells you what exhibitions are there currently, and what is coming. We went specifically for a photography exhibit, and a Japanese color woodblock print exhibit. The photography portion was very well spaced out, and quite an interesting collection of old photos, classic photos (Mapplethorpe, Ansel Adams, etc.) and new, interesting ones. You could tell they made an effort to include local artists, because there was one photo from a USF professor, and one from a previous Tampa Photographer Laureate. The only thing a bit creepy was the non-stop pacing of the security guards - it could be pretty distracting. We also enjoyed the Japanese exhibit, however, I wish it was larger. It was tucked away upstairs in a tiny room, and only contained about 20 woodblocks or so. After seeing the two exhibits we came for, we wandered around the other exhibits to see what they regularly display. Very impressed that they had a few very well known artists and paintings. It's incredibly cool to be inches away from an O'Keeffe, Monet, or Gauguin painting. I love that you can take pictures of everything as long as you don't use the flash on your camera. Make sure you visit the gift store - they carry postcards there and have a lot of great gift ideas.

As huge Star Wars fans we thoroughly enjoyed the Star Wars power of costume exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts in downtown st Pete! We took a unique journey into the Star Wars universe as characters were brought to life through a dramatic presentation of more than 60 original costumes. Star Wars Power of Costume closely examined the captivating process of costume design for iconic outfits featured in the first seven films of the Star Wars saga--from Queen Amidala's lavish gowns to Darth Vader's imposing black armor. We explored the artistry of the world's most recognized cinematic costumes, including Queen Amidala, Chewbacca, X-Wing Pilots, and Droids, including C-3PO and R2-D2. This exhibition went beyond the chronological, literary, or filmic order often used to chronicle Star Wars. It focused instead on the creative process, encompassing the essence of George Lucas' vision and the exciting challenge of translating his iconic characters into a dynamic reality.

I love art and after going to the Dali Museum almost a year ago, I finally made it here to The Museum of Fine Arts. Being from NY, I have been to The Museum of Natural History, The Museum of Modern Art and many other fine exhibitions. What I loved about the Museum of Fine Arts is that they had all the benefits of the larger museums with out the overwhelming and exhausting feeling. I didn't feel they lacked anything. They had all types of art from all time periods. I was so happy to see they had both works from Georgia O'keffe and Claude Monet (personal favorites). They also had wonderful sculptures from Thailand and Central America. One of my favorite aspects of the day was the Glass Blowing Lecture. The Museum of Fine Arts had a Glass Blowing artist give a presentation and allowed us (the people) to ask any questions we wanted. The lecture was super informative and I left feeling inspired. The museum was also hosting a private viewing of some of the costumes from the most recent Star Wars Movie. This however was an extra charge. Although a Star Wars Fan and a believer that fashion is art, I felt it over shadowed the other art and didn't participate. The Museum of Fine art offers a pethora of art and I look forward to a future visit.

This is an amazing museum. I cannot believe I waited this long to visit. Honey and I went with a few other friends to check out the StarWars costume exhibit on its last weekend. While there we also decided we should check out the rest of the museum since it was included in our ticket cost. The StarWars exhibit alone was worth the price. The costumes were amazing and to see the concept art along side it really show how far idea can go! Padme's costumes were by far the greatest! I was also stunned at how small Natalie Portman and even most of these actors must be in real life to fit in these costumes. Except for the actor that played Chewbacca he was super tall and slender! The rest of the museum was pretty traditional but they have some pretty awesome art. I saw some Georgia O Keeffe's and even a pretty cool Rockwell. The art is a bit scattered; each room seems perfectly curated but the flow from room to room is a a bit scattered. I would recommend this museum, it is huge!!! Their gift shop also has some awesome stuff. I got a free Porg mug with a purchase of my little StarWars notebook. You get the mug free with any StarWars purchase, I am assuming this was because it was it's last week being displayed here. I look forward to visiting again and will keep an eye out for upcoming exhibits.

Excellent Star Wars exhibit, and I'm not even a fan of Star Wars. It was very cool to see all the original and current costumes. The museum has organized this collection very nicely and the walking audio tour is detailed and helpful. The rest of the exhibits, outside of the costume collection, are beautiful and interesting. There is so much to see there.

Museum of Fine Arts really sparked my interest months ago and while recently traveling with a friend it was worth the wait. Granted there were a few gallery areas that weren't my favorite per se, it still was interesting and fun to wonder through the exhibit rooms. A patron could spend 2 hours at the museum if they read the plaques and go through every room. The cost at most is around $15, but there are student and senior discounts available. There is a bistro and photography is permitted in certain areas. The store has a great selection of gifts, souvenirs and artist tools. The added bonus is that there are other things to do in the area, which really makes a day at the museum a walk in the park as well, literally.

A well kept secret, the MFA of St. Petersburg is a small but exceedingly well-curated museum located in a beautiful neo classical building reminiscent of the old Getty Museum in Malibu, CA. Indeed, it has many similarities with the old Getty. Each room seems to bring a different era into focus--buddhist, Indian, classical Greek, American School, impressionist, wondrous sculpture, Rodins, Manets, a magnificent Georgia O'Keefe, spectacular photography, et al. All in all, breathtaking. There is a neoclassical courtyard open to the public adorned by several sculptures, also reminiscent of the old Getty. The museum store is cute and full of surpises such as Keith Haring Dominoes. The Dali will always be the big attraction in St. Petes, but the MFA is a big cleanup hitter. Definitely stop by!

Today we visited the museum to see the special exhibit of costumes from Star Wars. Admission to both this exhibit and the regular fine art, was $25. The Star Wars exhibit included an audio device which had setting for adults and a special setting for children. There was a great amount of costumes including mand of Padme and Amadalla's, Stormtroopers, Sith Lords, Jedi, Obiwan, Han, Leia, Chewbacca, R2D2, C3PO, BB8, Empire characters etc. this exhibit took up two floors and was really well put together. There were people of all ages and everyone seemed to be enjoying it. Afterwards we visited the regular fine art section which had a good variety of different mediums and periods on display. There was one interactive exhibit in the middle room that was like a giant sand box filled with dried whit beans. Patrons are encouraged to take their shoes off and walk in and play in it. The sensation of walking through felt amazingly good and comfortable. You could even bury yourself in beans. What a wonderful experience. Walking through the other rooms, we saw paintings by Monet, stained glass by Tiffany, African carved objects and South American artifacts. The staff was friendly, polite and helpful all throughout the museum from the young lady staffing a merchandise table outside the front door to the young guy selling tickets, to the gift shop team and the very helpful lady in the cafe, and the docents throughout. I recommend visiting to see the Star Wars exhibit and for seeing the regular exhibits.

Went for free on the first weekend thanks to Bank of America's museum deal, and it's a cute little place. Not a lot of art, but good variety in what they do have (asian, impressionist, religious). Lighting in the museum was pretty poor, which is like my #1 criteria for an art museum... I had lunch at the cafe and it was the worst lunch museum cafe I've had (I love eating in art museums, but alas this food & service was just bad).

This was our first stay n St. Pete and having visited the Star Wars exhibit made it very special. My favorite part of the exhibit were the original concept drawings. It really gave you a good in sight into the evolution of many of our favorite characters. CP30, almost came back as as female? Caitlyn CP30?

Where else can you currently see a Monet, R2D2 and a Tibetan Buddha from the 14th Century all in one place? I was very surprised with the museum. We came here to see the Stars Wars exhibit and very happy to see the rest of the museum is worth a visit. It truly is - and I'll definitely check it out again.

Pleasantly surprised. Many galleries with classic and modern art, some sculpture and photography, and the building itself is quite beautiful with a modern atrium and special exhibit side, and classically beautiful architecture on the permanent collection side. There is also a cafe and gift shop, if you're into that. Impressed that I got to see a Monet, O'Keeffe, Kara Walker, and the Guerrilla Girls collection was my favorite. Full disclosure, I got free admission through my job which made it 100% worth my time. If I had to pay the $20 admission fee, probably wouldn't have gone.

Interesting and eclectic collection. They have several Monets and a large impressionist collection, great artifacts from Greek/Roman era, and a Latin American artists exhibit upstairs (Jan 2011). (The Peter Sarkisian piece is like nothing I have ever seen.) Great building too. It has a huge atrium and expansive windows, so you can view the bay and the dorky segway tourists rolling by. There is a cafe but it was closed when we went. It took about an hour and a half to see the entire museum. Admission is expensive ($17!) which is too bad because I bet it would have much more traffic if it were lower. I had a 2-for-1 Groupon so it made it worth it. I doubt I would have gone at full price.

The size of this museum is just right for a person like me who prefers spending no more than two hours strolling among small exhibitions. I was there for 'Monet.' Although there weren't too many of his art works, I had my chance to review the authentic artwork. I was satisfied. The museum was quiet in the morning that gave me the luxury to stare at his works privately. Security guards took care visitors in good manner. My friend got to closer to the artwork once, and a guard approached us quietly to advise the proper distance between us and the painting. The exhibition space are divided into all size sections according to the events. Most of the display artworks are on the first floor. Majority of their displays are oil paintings; sculpture displays are in smaller sections. The museum offers children's play room equipped with toys and tolls to occupy their time while you take your time enjoy the artwork. If you want to buy a souvenir, the gift shop is near the entrance. The only drawback of this museum is its cafe. The quality of the food need a lot improvement. I had salmon nicoise for lunch, and found sand in the salad. There are plenty good restaurants right outside the museum. I will choose not to eat at this cafe again next time. It is wise to go there early in the morning for more of private viewing and for the parking spots. Overall, this museum is a great place to visit at Downtown St. P.

I am not a art museum person at all but this place was somewhat enjoyable even for me. It looks like the admission went up after the time I was here. Now the general admission is $17, student $10 and military $15. This museum has a wide range of collections. You will see some old partings, china/silverwears and crazy gadget from nowadays in the same building. With the nice change of styles of exhibits, surprisingly I did not get bored at all. The restaurant inside the museum is magnificent. You can see the bay and the food is just fantastic. They are moderately priced too. I can honestly say this is one of a few museums that I, an inartistic person actually enjoyed and thought worth the visit.

We spent a lovely afternoon exploring the collections. The art is delightful and inspiring. It was our lucky day that the Jewels of the Imagination exhibit had just opened. Jean Schlumberger was genius and his jewelry designs, incredible. The exhibit design tremendously enhanced the displays. A must see!

Wonderful collection! Nice passage of time, loved the monet and renior, could have used more of those. They were having a folk art on paper exhibit, not my forte. The gift shop was more of a book store. I can't say it was worth the 17 bucks. I think around 12/14 is more appropriate for a collection of this size.

This is a small art museum with a balanced collection that's worth viewing. It's in a beautiful building in a sublime location. I loved the old feel to it with most of its masterpieces hanging on picture hooks the way you'd hang them in your living room. It's the small cousin of the Chicago Art Institute. Intimate galleries. Lots of kids visiting in groups led by docents today, which was great to see! The museum is small enough to wander through in about 4 hours. Nice museum shop with some interesting books and momentos. Beautiful banyan trees outside.

St Pete Museum of Fine Arts is at the perfect setting -back to the water, both sides are beautiful parks, across the street are the fancy restaurants. Besides the permanent exhibition of different paintings, statues, etc. There are different special topics exhibitions throughout the year. This time I was there for the Guitar Festival. It displayed many classical guitars made from 1840 to 1990. They are not only please the eyes, they make beautiful music, too. Five world famous guitarists were invited to perform guitar solo concerts playing the collection on the auditorium stage. For the classical guitar music lovers, this was such a wonderful treat! The courtyard has attractive landscaping. The cafe offers , snack, drinks, food and brunch. The gift shop offers some unique gift items and souvenirs. This is a very cool place to hang out and enjoy the fine arts for all ages.

Summer Jazz Series is a hit. This started earlier (in June) and has been all over WMNF since then. We have been attending it when we are in town and what a treat to hear great bands in such a cool space. The new wing is so... Contemporary. I look forward to seeing what kind of shows actually make it to this space. Chihuly, in my opinion, was a pinnacle, exhibit, in the legacy galleries, there has to be something over-the-top planned for these new spaces. The new gift shop, now called the Museum Store is a place to check out. The things they stock make it a treat to go gift shopping. If you haven't already been there, you must go. Such a wide range of art on exhibit. From ancient to modern and even contemporary art. This place is very versatile and has a lot of history to show, definitely someplace for almost everyone. And check out the MFA Cafe too!!!!!!

It's a small, relatively unchanged collection. It's extremely humid inside which is kind of surprising. There's never any close-ish parking and I'm pretty sure we got food poisoning from a chicken salad sandwich. If you've never been, it's worth checking out once.

A visit to the Museum of Fine Arts is an enriching place to pass an hour or two. Museum parking is a hefty (but average?) price of $10; however, meter parking can easily be found nearby...depending on the time of day. The front entrance makes a grand statement, the grounds and courtyard adorned with statues are lovely and the staff are courteous.