New Britain Museum of American Art

America’s first museum dedicated solely to American art, this Connecticut institution holds more than 8,300 paintings, works on paper, sculptures and photographs. Spanning more than three centuries, this collection covers the major artists and movements of American art with particular strengths in colonial portraiture, the Hudson River School, American impressionism and the Ashcan School. One of its most famous works is the 1932 mural series “The Arts of Life in America” by Thomas Hart Benton, a room-filling celebration of American creativity and vitality during the Great Depression. The museum also holds examples from modern movements such as abstract expressionism, pop and op art, conceptual art and photo-realism, including works by Lee Krasner, Andy Warhol, Christo and Jeanne-Claude, and Robert Cottingham. The museum continues to acquire contemporary works by notable artists to reflect the evolving nature of American art. Among these more recent additions is Graydon Parrish’s painting “The Cycle of Terror and Tragedy,” 2007, a realist, allegorical tribute to those who died in the September 11, 2001 attacks. Set on the edge of the Frederick Law Olmsted-designed Walnut Hill Park, this purpose-built museum is one of New England’s largest, drawing a diverse range of visitors to explore the breadth and depth of American art.