Community Engagement at the Gardner

Working with local artists, performers, cultural leaders, and social justice organizations, the Museum works to build mutually beneficial relationships with our community.

OUR VALUES BROUGHT TO LIFE

Community and Studio programs bring to life the Museum's core values: creativity is our legacy; community is our purpose; the collection is our catalyst; and diversity, equity, and inclusion are our commitments.

Amplifier Projects

Community Engagement Amplifier Projects at the Gardner highlight change-makers working towards social justice through the arts.

LUMINARY LENS

The Luminary Lens Series features Neighborhood Salon Luminaries bringing fresh perspectives to the Gardner Museum’s historic collection through commissioned new works.

IN THE STUDIO

A new digital series that takes you into the studios and workspaces of artists who call Boston home.

Enjoy programming co-created with local‌ ‌partner organizations around Special Exhibition themes. These deep-touch collaborations are presented both at the Gardner, and at valued community sites around the city.

ENGAGING ALL AUDIENCES

The Gardner Museum welcomes all people. We work with community leaders and artists to co-produce and design programs and hands-on activities that celebrate the voices and talents of our neighboring communities. We engage new audiences, learn from fresh perspectives, and connect visitors with the Museum’s rich collection, special exhibitions, and available resources. 

Neighborhood Salon Luminaries: Learning from the Community

Modeled after Isabella Stewart Gardner’s legacy as a curator and hostess of artist salons around the turn of the century, the Neighborhood Salon is a gathering of Boston's select artists and cultural luminaries. Neighborhood Salon cohorts nurture an active exchange of ideas between Boston's most innovative and thoughtful creatives, fostering collaborations and artistic networks while shaping Gardner Museum programming.

MEET THE LUMINARIES
NEIGHBORHOOD SALON LUMINARIES

Polly Thayer Starr Visiting Artist Series

Polly Thayer Starr Artists utilize the Museum and our special exhibitions as catalysts for their own creative production. To further the museum’s legacy of creativity, Boston artists work in close collaboration with Gardner staff to create programs and experiences for the public that invite experimentation with creativity in all its forms.

MEET THE VISITING ARTISTS

PROGRAMMING FOR OUR LOCAL COMMUNITY

The Gardner provides a number of events with our local community members in mind. These include our free First Thursday evenings, Free Days, Amplifier Projects, and Studio programs.

Image at top: Artist and Neighborhood Salon Luminary Silvia López Chavez presents an interactive Studio project as part of our Summer 2018 exhibition, Life, Death, and Revelry. Photo by mneyid.com.