Philadelphia Museum of Art
Greek Revival landmark on Fairmount holding more than 240,000 works from across the world.
The Philadelphia Museum of Art grew out of the Centennial Exposition of 1876, when the city resolved to keep a permanent collection of art and industrial design. Its main building, raised on the rocky outcrop of Fair Mount at the head of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, opened in 1928. Designed in a Greek Revival idiom of golden Minnesota dolomite, it takes the form of three temple-like pavilions linked by colonnaded wings, with polychrome terracotta pediments modelled by C. Paul Jennewein crowning the north portico.
The collection now numbers well over 240,000 objects, ranging from medieval European sculpture and Pennsylvania German furniture to Japanese and Chinese architectural interiors reassembled inside the galleries. Holdings of Marcel Duchamp, Constantin Brancusi and Thomas Eakins are among the deepest anywhere. A subterranean expansion by Frank Gehry, completed in 2021, opened up vaulted spaces and a new forum. The nearby Perelman Building houses costume, textiles, photography and design, while Rodin's works are shown in a separate pavilion on the Parkway.
Highlights
- Greek Revival main building with polychrome terracotta pediment sculpture
- Frank Gehry's 2021 core project, including the vaulted walkway
- Extensive Marcel Duchamp and Thomas Eakins holdings
- Reassembled Japanese teahouse and Chinese palace hall interiors
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