McNay Art Museum — Attraction in San Antonio

At the McNay Art Museum in San Antonio, visual delights unfold not as singular revelations but as conversations across time and geography. On a recent Sunday, when the museum opened its doors with free admission for a special family day, the institution revealed itself as a vessel both containing artistic treasures and transcending its own boundaries.

The main exhibition space pulsates with chromatic intensity. Chartreuse yellow walls host fiery pink abstractions, creating an environment that feels less like staid museum presentation and more like immersion in pure sensation. This bold curatorial choice transforms how we perceive the art itself, suggesting that viewing requires not just our eyes but our entire sensory system.

In one gallery, Fausto Fernandez's "Burden Narratives While Stuck in Traffic in Pursuit of An Obligation at the Port of Entry" (2023) delivers exactly what its title promises. Created using acrylic, spray paint, and watercolor on paper with collage and resin mounted on canvas, the work transforms the mundane frustration of border crossing into a meditation on liminality. Fernandez, who grew up in the El Paso/Ciudad Juárez area, layers abstracted imagery of cars into ribbons of hot pink that snake across the surface like lanes of stalled traffic.

This work speaks to the McNay's evolving mission. Acquired through "Collecting Texas," a new acquisition initiative determined by popular vote, it represents the institution's commitment to reflecting San Antonio's cultural diversity and geographic reality. What Marion Koogler McNay began as a personal collection has transformed into a living dialogue with its community.

The museum's European holdings offer their own surprises. A Modigliani portrait, encased in an ornate gilt frame whose baroque flourishes contrast with the artist's elongated, modernist simplicity, demonstrates how the McNay negotiates between old and new. The subject's penetrating blue eyes and stretched neck embody the Italian artist's signature style, while the theatrical framing reminds us that even revolutionary art eventually becomes tradition.

Nearby hangs Benny Andrews' 1965 portrait of a police officer, rendered in his characteristic relief technique that makes paint protrude from the canvas like wounded flesh. Created during the civil rights movement, Andrews' work speaks to systems of authority with a visual language that feels urgently relevant today.

Food trucks cluster outside, their aromas mingling with the Japanese-inspired garden's earthy scents. Children dart between Tom Wesselmann's "Standing Tulip" and Philip Grausman's stainless steel "Victoria," artworks that would command reverence in most museums but here serve as sophisticated playmates. The McNay understands something profound about art's purpose: masterpieces needn't be experienced in hushed isolation.

This understanding flows from Marion herself, who moved to San Antonio in 1926 and constructed not just a Spanish Colonial Revival mansion but an entirely new relationship between art and Texas. Her four marriages suggest a restless spirit seeking connection, which she ultimately found more reliably in paintings than partnerships. When she died in 1950, she left behind 700 artworks, a 24-room mansion, and a vision of art as both elevated and accessible.

The current leadership continues this balancing act, offering free admission on H-E-B Thursday Nights and the first Sunday of each month, plus special family days. Director Matthew McLendon has built upon Richard Aste's legacy of financial sustainability and community engagement.

As sunlight filters through palm fronds onto Wesselmann's vivid abstractions, the food trucks serve tacos to families sprawled on lawns beneath modernist sculptures. The McNay reveals itself as uniquely Texan: ambitious in scale, unapologetically beautiful, resistant to easy categorization, and profoundly democratic in spirit. Marion's ultimate partnership, it seems, was with the...

This place is beautiful and I came for a specific exhibit, but they are weird and rude about children. My kids are behaved and quiet, and they are older. But, god forbid one walks 20 feet away from you. They will act like you’re a terrible parent who can’t keep track of your kids. To make matters worse, this lady working there was so frustrated that my 10 year old left my side to walk maybe 30 feet around a corner to where her dad was standing that she held me up from “keeping track of her” by asking how old she was and then admonishing me that she can’t be by herself and I have to watch my children. A normal person would clearly deduce that she was walking to be with her dad. She was silent, didn’t say a word, and was way more behaved than this other kid with his parents kicking his flip flop across the floor, but this lady was all about taking me to task. Before that, another one of the staff members when I asked where the Tobin was ignored me to yell at my 11 year old for touching art work when he didn’t and was next to his dad. Then this person said he thinks the Tobin was a certain direction. Fascinating because his job is to stand there all day and direct traffic and answer questions!! Another lady working there stared us up and down when we walked into her area because of the kids. Seriously, these people were like the movie “The Witches.” With the exception of a gentleman, Mr. Olivares, who did help us know where to go very nicely, the info staff were not polite, and it wasn’t like my kids were loud, running, or anything but chill today. We left because these people are so afraid of children it was just uncomfortable. Sad because it is beautiful and there is a lot of thought provoking art. The Witte was a lot better for kids. By the way, I rarely leave a negative review, and we are from Baltimore and have taken our kids to museums there and the Smithsonian and were never made to feel as unwelcome as we...

I like to purchase tickets in advance just to make the process easier. They send you your ticket by email and you simply scan it on arrival. Easy peasy. They have quite a bit of free parking space in their property. I arrived at opening time- ten am and there was no one else there except employees. I had my pick of the spaces. Thankfully- because I have a large vehicle.

The museum itself… it’s very well kept, clean and spacious. It seems to be an old residence that was transformed into a museum with luxurious grounds.

I came here because I am interested in older art and paintings. I love the classics. I was surprised to see they had a few variety here- monet, cezanne and of course Picasso. Those were neat to see. I really enjoyed taking my time observing them without a crowd or line as I’ve seen elsewhere in other art galleries of the famous painters.

I was however disappointed in the extend of their displayed collection. Many of the special exhibits weren’t my vibe and that’s totally fair. The museum itself is actually quite small comparative to the others I’ve visited in the past. I had to recheck the map a few times to ensure I hadn’t missed anything. Many exhibits or wings were closed off due to renovations or special events.

I still would pay the price I did for the works I did get to see, I had just hoped I would see a more extensive collection and a larger part of the residence as it boasts this as part of the appeal.

I also found it a little bit confusing to follow the maps, there’s no directional path it’s kind of go with the flow and see where you go.

The gift shop portion didn’t have much, just a few little shelves at the entrance by the ticket booth.

Staff was extremely helpful and friendly though and they happily assisted me with any questions I had while I was there. Also nice they have many locations for restroom...