Pensacola Museum of Art — Attraction in Pensacola

New resident to Pensacola. Went to the museum with my parents and one of my 3 sons. As other posts have said, very small museum. Dealt with a fairly silent front desk worker who spoke little and so softly everyone in our group near the counter struggled to hear. Paid up and entered. Art? Guess we should have researched the place first. Didn't even occur to us to ask if there was actually art in the place. 95% of displayed pieces were school kid art----which is fine, and some of it was actually very good. But, as I trust anybody can imagine, not overly interesting unless I suppose your child has submitted art. But, I get it from the museums point of view.....far more paying to get in to see their kid's art than would ever enter otherwise. Our group was clearly unhappy, front desk gal knew it and didn't care. We were out of there very quickly and won't be back. Two days later happened to walk into the art gallery next store. FAR more art to be viewed....and for free with pleasant workers. I'd encourage all potential visitors to this art museum to do there own research ahead of time to see if there is a traveling exhibit of particular note. If not, skip it and spend your time downtown viewing the many other places that are great....and many free and in the open air. Downtown is a museum itself if one is...

Admittedly, the museum is small, and its current layout may feel limited. At the moment, only one floor is open, mainly showcasing local or regional contemporary creations, which may not appeal to all visitors. There is a small engraving by Goya and a piece by Gallé, though these are discreetly placed and easy to overlook.

I remembered, from a visit about twenty years ago, a respectable collection of 19th-century American paintings that I found of real interest. It's unclear whether this has been moved or replaced temporarily, possibly to make room for the upcoming exhibition (apparently focused on aquatic themes, based on what's being prepared upstairs).

Of course, this is only a matter of personal taste. I hope that the museum’s promise of being “more than a museum,” as stated on the poster outside, will be realized in future exhibitions. For now, I personally found the current offering rather underwhelming. The French-language signage is somewhat tucked away in a back corridor, currently closed to children’s activities.

That said, the staff were very welcoming, admission was reduced (6 instead of 12 dollars), and the ticket is valid for a week and also gives access to other museums in the city—which is a definite plus. The temperature inside, thanks to the building's history as a former prison, is...

This art gallery currently has some interesting but very disturbing works on display (August 2025). I couldn’t quite understand the motivation behind the exhibition, which felt more suited to a dedicated contemporary art venue.. especially because the pieces have such a provoking character. The “Duality” exhibition on the second floor was intense.

For example, one piece showed a twisted, uprooted tree hanging from above, and beneath it a torn-up patch of grass resembling a grave, where several maggots were arranged around two dead hands. This is not for children… my son, looking at it, couldn’t understand what he was seeing.

Personally, I also found the “church tank” and some hanging udders difficult to take in within the context of a city museum. I don’t feel that the Museum of Art is the right environment for these works, and I wouldn’t take my kids back here.

Ticket: We got a combined ticket for the Museum of History, the Art Gallery, and the Historic Village.. $12 for adults and $7 for kids. It’s a good deal if you want a first look into Pensacola’s culture and history all in one...