History Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

watkin building, 1924

the museum of fine arts, houston (mfah) oldest art museum in texas. in 1917, museum site dedicated houston public school art league (later houston art league) intention of becoming public art museum. first museum building – opened public in 1924 – represented determination of houstonians transform growing city rich cultural center. trustees , staff dedicated small art collection community , defined function of museum bringing “art everyday life” of houstonians. today mfah encompasses 2 buildings, caroline wiess law , audrey jones beck buildings, house primary collections , temporary exhibitions; 2 decorative arts house museums; glassell studio art school; sculpture garden; state-of-the-art facility conservation, storage , archives; , administrative building glassell junior school of art

prior opening of permanent museum building in 1924, george m. dickson bequeathed collection first important american , european oil paintings. in 1930s, houstonian annette finnigan began donation of antiquities , texas philanthropist ima hogg gave collection of avant-garde european prints , drawings. ima hogg’s gift followed subsequent donations of southwest native american , frederic remington collections during 1940s. same decade witnessed 1944 bequest of eighty-three renaissance paintings, sculptures , works on paper renowned new york collectors edith , percy straus. on next 2 decades, gifts prominent houston families , foundations concentrated on european art fifteenth twentieth centuries, contemporary painting , sculpture, , african, oceanic , pre-columbian art. among these gifts of life trustees sarah campbell blaffer, dominique de menil , alice n. hanzsen of samuel h. kress foundation. augmented museum purchases, permanent collection numbered 12,000 objects 1970.

museum circa 1926

the mfah collection doubled 1970 1989, fueled continued donations of art along advent of both accession endowment funding , corporate giving. in 1974, john , audrey jones beck placed on long-term loan fifty impressionist , post-impressionist masterpieces, augmenting museum’s strong impressionist collection. collection never leave mfah, formally entering holdings in 1998 gift of life trustee audrey jones beck. collection permanently displayed in building bears name. on heels of cullen foundation’s funding of mfah’s first accessions endowment in 1970, brown foundation, inc., launched challenge grant in 1976 stay in effect twenty years raising funds both accessions , operational costs in landmark amounts , providing incentive additional community support. in 1976, photography collection established target stores’ first corporate grant museum. today museum sixth-largest in country.