Newport Art Museum

Love going to museums when im out of town. It's winter time so they were renovating a lot of the room. The front desk only asked for donations, so we didn't have to pay for an entrance fee. Lots of history in these walls and it's just a nice place to check out.

I stopped by this cute little museum because I absolutely love seeing art. If you are a member, the entrance fee is free, but otherwise, it is $15 for adults, which, in my opinion, is quite steep for the amount of exhibits you get to see between the two buildings. You can pay the fee at either location and the staff is friendly and helpful. Both locations, including the grounds, are well organized and maintained. This place is definitely worth checking out while visiting the area.

$15 a person seems quite pricey given the size of the collection (and one of the buildings was closed when we visited in February 2025), but there's a lot to love about this museum. The mansion that houses it is gorgeous, and it makes sense that we saw a wedding reception getting set up while we were there! They have a lot of new art and slightly unusual installations, which I enjoyed, as well as some pieces from the 1800s, mostly landscapes. Would love to see what the other building is like!

Such a nice little museum in a really cool building! Absolutely loved the surrealism exhibit by Arghavan Khosravi that was there in March 2024. Staff was so welcoming and helpful!

Lovely small museum featuring regional artists. The main building itself is worth the visit; a gorgeous 19th century stick-built mansion.

Two artists were highlighted on the two floors. Extremely well done installations. One can meander from room to room at a comfortable space. No one rushes you through. I wish we would have been there for Fridsy music! Check their programming before you visit.

Better than I expected! There are two buildings. The older building has very charming interior details, a gorgeous staircase, nice paintings. I enjoyed it a lot!

The Wake and Create was really well done. The kids were engaged and learned a lot! They particularly enjoyed the student art gallery.

Holy smokes, I was expecting the new money of Newport to bring art to this museum but I didn't expect Dale Chihuly glassworks, Gilbert Stuart portraits, and a complete (temporary) exhibit of Georgia O'Keeffe's works. There is a lot of art to see in this converted home. Expect 90 minutes or so to properly appreciate what's on display in both buildings. [Review 18650 overall - 70 in Rhode Island - 2172 of 2022.]

Was in town for a couple of days and we went to visit this museum. I really liked it a lot. Entry pricing was fair. It also wasn't too crowded and we went on a Friday afternoon. Not sure what the building used to be before it was a museum but it seems to have been around for a long time and also very well kept. On the outside it looked smaller but is actually a lot bigger once you are in. Love the layout of it and the variation of the art pieces.

I'm so glad I made the trek to this museum. it was so spacious and had so many different pieces of art on display from different eras. I also love that the museum is located in the former Griswold House which was the first mansion in Newport, R.I. the museum does a great job of persevering the house and the history of its former owners. I'm looking forward to visiting this museum again for future exhibits.

I LOVE this museum! We are so lucky to have a small but wonderful museum like this in Newport! There's not a huge collection of artwork on display, but the fact that it's housed inside of the John NA Griswold House from the 1800s makes the historical relevance all the more interesting and fun to visit. Currently, they have a Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney exhibit on display, and I had the pleasure the other day of viewing amazing sculptures by one of the first well known female sculptors. They also have an interesting modern art exhibit up right now, and the room with the electrical flower installation is the best. I won't give away any more, but you should definitely check it out before it goes away! The museum also hosts a variety of fun events, such as Thursday evenings where the museum is open late and they do everything from showing movies in the gallery to scavenger hunts around the grounds, all with munchies and a cash bar. It's an affordable way to experience the musical and have a unique night out without breaking the bank. I also love attending the Artist's Ball benefit gala every summer, where the outdoor lawn is transformed into a summery paradise for dinner and dancing under the stars with Newport's creative finest. Finally, be sure to attend Murder At The Museum, which happens every Saturday evening. It's an interactive historical murder mystery show where the audience gets to interact with actors who pretend they're from different time periods. It's really fun when you try to take an iPhone picture and the actor pretends they don't know what it is! :) After the "murder" happens, you get to search the museum for clues and question the suspects. It's so neat how they're able to stay in character! The Newport Art Museum is a great addition to the community, and must visit for the vibrant and fun events!

A gem on Bellevue Avenue. Knowledgeable staff. Nice collection of well known 19th & 20th century American artists as well changing contemporary artists exhibitions. Housed in historic home and separate exhibition building. Small art school nearby.

I'm not an avid art connoisseur so YMMV but I found little exciting during a recent visit. It was great to have the whole place to ourselves, I didn't feel rushed in the least bit. Unfortunately there just weren't a lot of interesting works being exhibited either. Place was kind of one-dimensional, if you want a specific time period and place then I'm sure this is the place for you. Otherwise, nothing jumped out at me.

This was such a great experience and a very refreshing visit. Not your typical art museum, this museum's architecture stands out so differently than most others, but it was fascinating to step inside of. I was expecting a larger collection of pieces over all, but the ones they do have do not disappoint.

Really nice but pretty small and more of a focus on Gertrude Vanderbilt's artwork and other American artists. More than the house that held the American artists, I enjoyed going to the separate house that holds all of Vanderbilt's artwork. There was a lot more information there on the background of the artwork and the cultural context surrounding the pieces. On average you might spend about an hour here, so plan accordingly.

While the William Morris Hunt-designed Griswold House is lackluster relative to the other Newport Gilded Age mansions, its permanent collection offers incredible insight into life in Gilded Age Newport. I was pleasantly surprised to learn about Howard Gardiner Cushing and see so many of his paintings at NAM. It was also nice to see so much of the museum's permanent collect on display.

Very charming old house converted to a museum. Be sure to check out the 2 dog heads on the fireplace- now this is a good way to immortalize your pets! Lovely and varied collection of paintings, sculpture and glass work. I was thirlled to find 2 Chihuly pieces upstairs and another fantastic bowl made up of thin glass threads. I say good for kids because kids of any age should be exposed to art. Support the Arts and visit!

Had a terrible, horrible experience here. My partner and I had received an "admit two" voucher from his uncle while we were visiting RI for the holidays. We're avid travelers and art lovers and were excited to check out this space. When we presented our voucher to the elderly woman sitting at the front desk she proceeded to make a loud, shaming, ridiculous show of how old the voucher was. It was over the top and completely classless. She even went so far as to say she would accept it, but didn't know what "the management upstairs" would say and that we should leave a donation for the museum (???). I was aghast and wanted to leave immediately. Totally unwelcoming, unprofessional, and elitist. Skip it.

This review is of the Murder at the Museum event, performed by the Marley Bridges Theatre Company. While the show was well developed and the museum served as a great set piece, it was really the acting that sold me on it. The characters have charm and wit, with jokes ad-libbed throughout the show. The show was really interactive, but it moves along perfectly well whether you would like to participate or you prefer to watch from a distance. The whole night would have been perfect, if not for the poor woman who was murdered. :( They even got mad at me when I called the police.

This was a nice small museum. I can't say I would pay much for this but it definitely fits in with the Newport vibe. We were there for an art auction so admission was free that day

Pleasantly surprised to find that this museum has a really interesting collection, with diverse exhibits featuring a wide range of art. The house itself is beautiful and was fun to explore - we especially liked the varied patterns in the hardwood floors. Highly recommend, even for art novices and families looking for something to do in Newport on a rainy day.

A wonderful small museum. Definitely worth the stop, anytime you are in Newport. Great permanent collection and always something new and interesting on display.

Attended Art After Dark. This is a new free event for the museum which was a lot of fun. When we arrived at around 6 PM there was live music playing by the Newport String Project and the early evening children's tours were finishing up. The guy doing the kid's tours was terrific. We toured the special and permanent collections in the main building and then took in the special exhibit in the Cushing Building. Adults and children were doing a Red Poppy corsage making craft which looked very pretty and tied in to Veterans Day. There was a bar set up with reasonable prices and a free sampling of the local Sons of Liberty whiskey.The staff was very knowledgeable about helping us decide which whiskies to sample, and they were delicious. In another room Harvest Kitchen offering tastings of their applesauce, hot carrots and dill green beans all of which were yummy. Harvest Kitchen works with at risk youth in RI and I thought the partnership with the museum during this event was nice. Overall a great way to explore the museum in the evening, especially for those enjoy art or want to get their kids interested in art. TIP: Don't miss the galleries upstairs on the second floor.The lights come on when you enter the rooms and I thought they were closed as the lights were off and missed them.

This review is about the workshop I was supposed to attend next week. Be forewarned about signing up here. After I purchased all the materials, they just gave me a notice that it will be canceled due to low attendance. Sure, I can get my money back, but I don't think I will sign up for any more at this venue with this policy.