The Frick Pittsburgh Museums & Gardens — Attraction in Pittsburgh

The Frick covers a lot of ground, some paid and some free and is a lovely site to explore. I'll try and give a rundown of the different areas and my thoughts!

The visitors centre is the starting point and where you check in for house tours and any paid for exhibitions. There's a pretty big gift shop and lockers if needed. The house and art museum have size restrictions on bags and will send you to the lockers- to give you an idea my B&N bookbag was too big so anything over a decent-sized handbag! There's a cafe next door, I didn't go in but it seemed pretty busy which I always think is a good sign!

From the visitor centre, you can walk to the carriage house. There's a small free car exhibition ( I loved the tiny Bantam cars!) which is really interesting and fun. There's also a paid for exhobition- at the moment, it's on Pittsburgh and the Great Migration. It is interesting and using the cars to explore how people moved from the South up to Pittsburgh worked really well. The cars were presented nicely however it is small considering the cost of admission to it.

Clayton is the main house tour and I loved it. The house is beautiful and the artwork and history is fascinating, especially from a Pittsburgh perspective. The tour has been changed- previously it focused on the house and artwork now there's a social history slant around the strikes and social history of the time. I liked it, although I think others in my group were a little disappointed. I think for me the big thing was our guide was engaged and into the subject which makes such a difference with house tours.

The art museum is small but interesting. It's strange, I didn't see any directional signs outside saying 'Welcome' and honestly, with all the doors shut it looked like it was closed- at first I thought I'd missed the main entrance! Inside are several rooms of artwork from the collection of Frick's daughter. It's quite diverse from Chinese cases to more classical portraiture and I think shows her personality!

Don't miss the little greenhouse- you can go in and there's actually a really wide range of...

I think the most important thing to remember is that the Frick is not just the one small building with a once privately held art collection. The Frick, as the brochure says, is an ‘experience’. From start to finish the entire estate needs to be savored; one painting at a time, one building at a time, one automobile at a time, one flower at a time, and one room of the Clayton at a time. Enjoy the Visitors Center, the souvenir shop filled with all sorts of amazing items, and last but not least, enjoy the Café. If you arrive first thing in the morning when they open, allow a couple of hours to see everything, and then have an elegant lunch.

Yes, the art museum is small - one of the smallest I’ve seen next to the Kennedy Museum of Art in Athens, Ohio. But it’s the small museums that are the most manageable - ones that when you’re done there’s no ‘burn out’ syndrome. I love art, all kinds of art, and there are some truly fine examples on display. Take the time to appreciate what is there, and don’t try to critically compare it to museums you’ve been to ‘all over the world’ as far as the quantity or quality. I too have been to museums all over the world and still found this enjoyable. Loved the collection of fine vehicles in the Car and Carriage Museum. The Greenhouse was mostly under renovation and only the center room contained plants and flowers, but there was still something beautiful there to enjoy.

The staff were all very kind and helpful, we shared names of artists and influences, and they couldn’t have been nicer.

Overall my time at the Frick was amazing. I plan to go back again in the summer to...

Everything from the grounds, the architecture, the classic and exquisite main and free exhibits from the permanent collection, which includes decorative arts and a vast array of painting, to their wonderful special exhibition, occasionnally for a nominal entrance fee, the lectures, docent tours and musical perfomances in an acoustically excellent space...outstanding local treasure not to be missed. Summers on Friday nights include dinner available in the delicious Cafe, musical perfomances, food trucks and an incredible selection in the gift shop, which is also beautifully designed. The carriage house is a newly reopened and refurbished space housing an amazing collection of actual vehicles from carriages to classic cars that will delight car enthusiasts. And, if you are from out of town, reservations and an admission fee are required for Clayton, the original home of the Frick family, still beautifully decorated accurately to the period. They also provide and recommend tours. Children may not be permitted under a certain age, so do inquire. The Cafe for daily lunch is excellent, but if you are not a Frick member, it's wise to call ahead and reserve the morning of your visit, as prior to same day is only for members. The menu is wonderful , and the atmosphere charming. Well behaved children and grandchildren will usually enjoy the food, but it is a cozy and vintage style, but outdoor door seating is available wheather permitting. Families will enjoy the easy acces across the street to wonderful Frick Park, one of Pittsburgh's several 19th century large and varied...