University of Michigan Museum of Art — Attraction in Ann Arbor

Fantastic free art gallery located at the heart of the University of Michigan campus. A great way to spend an afternoon is just pursuing the spaces of this gorgeous gallery.

There are stairs connecting the various floors but there are also elevators and everything is disability accessible. Bathrooms are located on the very bottom floor (don’t be fooled by the closet area next to the coat racks at check-in!) This is also where the Study Cases are located and, in my opinion, some of the best artwork in the gallery: the Inuit carvings are striking and hauntingly beautiful.

I only had a very short time to visit, a little over an hour, but I was able to see quite a bit in that time. I focused my attention on the Chinese and Korean art galleries, as well as the Modern and Contemporary Art. I was pleasantly surprised to find FOUR Picassos on display!

My favorite exhibition was UMMA’s Vertical Gallery, with art by Andrea Carlson.

In Andrea Carlson’s Future Cache, a 40-foot-tall memorial wall towers over visitors, commemorating the Cheboiganing (Burt Lake) Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians who were violently burned from their land in Northern Michigan on October 15, 1900. Written across the walls above and around the memorial, a statement proclaims Anishinaabe rights to the land we stand on: “You are on Anishinaabe Land.” To say I was thrilled to see Ojibwe written on a huge vertical wall in the middle of a public space is an understatement!

Presented alongside the typography are paintings of imagined decolonized landscapes and a symbolic cache of provisions. This installation challenges visitors to reflect on how they have benefited from the legacies of colonization, to consider where they stand, and where to go from here. It also seeks to foster a sense of belonging for displaced Indigenous peoples fighting for restitution.

I definitely recommend everyone come visit this exhibition: on view from now...

GO. PLEASE GO. It is so amazing in this museum. I have so much to say. 11/10. The entry is FREE. There is a gift shop in with many, many cool, affordable gifts and things! The entire museum, FANTASTIC. The security just monitored. They mind their own, they are just there to obviously just observe and make sure people follow the “DO NOT TOUCH” rules. I did ask about photography, and they were as friendly as ever. NO FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY ALLOWED HOWEVER, you can still take pictures! Just please be sure your flash is off! The amount of mesmerizing art work inside that building is unbelievable. It is an absolute masterpiece inside. My significant other and I walked around for quite some time. We got plenty of pictures and really soaked it all in. We are from West Virginia on vacation and today was our last day in the city. We have been up to Greenbay, WI on this trip. We went completely around lake MI. This was one of the coolest things I did on my entire trip. I really highly recommend this place. Make the trip here. Please. When we went to leave we did grab a few stickers from the gift shop. I love how I say “a few” and spent $34 on just stickers. So worth it. They have everything. I loved the gift shop as well. As we were leaving, a young gentleman, who worked for the university, asked us in the most gentle manner if he could ask us a few questions for a survey about our experience at the museum. Of course we said yes, and told him how grateful we were for our experience here. I did not get his name (I wish I would have.) About 6ft. White male. Brown hair, he did have on a hat. He was the kindest ever. Thank you so much for our survey! I do hope you see this!! :) Anyways, yes. Visit here. You will take home so many memories, pictures, and learn so much while walking through!

Much love U.M.M.A.

Best regards, Isabella G....

The museum is a jewel in the University's treasure trove. Entrance is free but a board recommends that a visitor may donate. No museum can make itself more welcoming than this

The hall with older European paintings and artefacts are intriguing for an art historian. The relief work depicting Saint Jerome and Gregory confiscated from the Rothschild house in Vienna by the Nazis and by Good luck recovered after the war, fascinates.

The sculpture is very well selected. The statue of Nydia, the Blind Girl of Pompie is spell binding for it's realism. The painting Girl in Blue by Thomas Wilmer Dewing is epitome of modern Western notion of female beauty.

For those who love modern art there is fair selection of Picasso, Paul Revera and few Impressionists though they do not dominate the collection

Do not miss the Korean pieces in the rich Asian section (can perhaps be called Far East section). They are quite unique.

A great effort by...