Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

03/10/2025

"So far, the Gardner Museum Sunday afternoon concerts have been the best musical events I’ve been to this year."

WBUR featured our Spring Concert Series in their guide to classical music events in Greater Boston. Check out their highlights—then get your tickets for our upcoming concerts at go.gardnermuseum.org/music

https://www.wbur.org/news/2025/03/10/2025-spring-classical-music-guide

Music has been an integral part of the Gardner experience ever since the Museum opened in 1903 with a celebration that featured a performance by members of

03/08/2025

On this International Women’s Day, we celebrate the women who create, disrupt, and redefine the world.

Isabella Stewart Gardner built a museum that defied tradition—one that invited curiosity, personal connection, and transformation. Nearly 120 year later, the Museum still embraces her spirit, exhibiting living artists of diverse backgrounds, mediums, and perspectives who challenge convention and dare us to see the world in new ways.

In Waters of the "Abyss: An Intersection of Spirit and Freedom", Fabiola Jean-Louis envisions a future where the spiritual and material worlds coexist in harmony. She draws from Haiti’s spiritual traditions, revolutionary history, and her own deeply personal journey to craft a blueprint for liberation and unity.

Where do YOU find inspiration today?

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🖼️: John Singer Sargent (Florence, 1856 - 1925, London) Isabella Stewart Gardner, 1888.
📷: Photo courtesy of the artist.

03/07/2025

Happy birthday, Michelangelo, born this day in 1475! Have you ever noticed this drawing by the Rennaisance master in the Short Gallery?

This Pietà was created as a gift for poet Vittoria Colonna, one of the most influential women of the Italian Renaissance. A close friend of Michelangelo, she was a patron of the arts, a collector, and deeply engaged in intellectual circles—including Titian, an artist Isabella Stewart Gardner adored.

Does that sound familiar?

The parallels were certainly not lost on Isabella, who purchased the work at auction in 1902 and originally displayed it alongside a letter from Colonna herself.

🔗 Learn more: go.gardnermuseum.org/3XAibQr

🖼️: Michelangelo Buonarroti, Pietà (detail), 1540.

03/06/2025

Isabella believed she was buying a Titian. It turned out to be a work by one of the first European female artists to achieve everlasting fame.

Sofonisba Anguissola had an incredible gift for capturing the personalities and emotions of her subjects, making her portraits feel strikingly real. Her talent earned her the admiration of Michelangelo—and a prestigious position at the Spanish court, where she painted members of the royal family.

Her groundbreaking career not only influenced generations of artists but also helped pave the way for women to pursue professional artistic careers.

Stop by the Titian Room on your next visit to see it in person!

🖼️: Sofonisba Anguissola, Juana of Austria and a Young Girl (detail), 1561-1562. Oil on canvas.

03/04/2025

🏺Beneath Rembrandt’s empty frame, another treasure is missing—a 3,000 year old Chinese bronze vessel, the oldest work taken during the 1990 theft.

Learn more about Gardner’s gu, and what it reveals about Isabella’s place in the history of collecting Asian art in America this week on .

🔗 go.gardnermuseum.org/4h8X2Ug

03/03/2025

The portrait Isabella didn't intend for you to see 🤫

In 1892, Isabella commissioned pastel portraits of herself and her husband Jack from the Viennese artist Ludwig Passini while they were in Venice. Although she liked Passini's work, the portraits "never gave her pleasure."

She ultimately chose not to display the finished piece in her Museum—and now only this photograph survives.

🔗 Tap the link in bio to learn more of the story and take a closer look.

🖼️: Italian, Venice, Photograph of Ludwig Passini’s Portrait of Isabella Stewart Gardner, 1892. Albumen print on card.

02/27/2025

🔹The journey begins—"Waters of the Abyss: An Intersection of Spirit and Freedom" is now open to the public.

Through stunning new works, Haitian artist Fabiola Jean-Louis explores the intersections of Vodou spirituality, Black liberation, and ancestral memory—inviting us to reflect on history and envision a future of freedom.

🎟 On view now through May 25, 2025. Plan your visit: go.gardnermuseum.org/WatersOfTheAbyss

02/26/2025

We are deeply saddened by the passing of artist and sculptor Ming Fay. His playful, larger-than-life installations of immersive gardens explored humanity’s place in the natural world and brought joy to people of all ages.

Ming Fay once said, “In my work I strive to demonstrate the wonder of even the humblest natural forms, lending the viewer a new appreciation of the ordinary.”

The Gardner Museum is honored to share the artist’s work this summer in our exhibition "Ming Fay: Edge of the Garden." Our thoughts are with Ming Fay’s family and loved ones.

📷: Ming Fay in his studio, courtesy of the artist

02/26/2025

WBUR featured our upcoming event, Fabiola Jean-Louis on the Art of Black Liberation, in their “5 Things to Do This Weekend”!

🗓️ Join us Thursday, Feb. 27, as WBUR’s Arielle Gray speaks with artist Fabiola Jean-Louis about Black ancestry, spiritualism in art, and the power of imagination in shaping histories of liberation.

Plus, a discussion of ancestry in Haitian art and Hawaiian music in concert.

02/26/2025

We love seeing the Gardner through your lens—thank you, .jpg on Instagram, for sharing these gorgeous photos!

What has the inspired you to create? 💮 Tag us in your art and photos for a chance to be featured.

📷 by .jpg

02/25/2025

Even in the depths of winter, nature finds ways to surprise us. 🌿✨

Enter Winter Jasmine. This resilient shrub bursts into vibrant yellow flowers before its leaves emerge—bringing a touch of spring to the coldest months.

Visit the courtyard now to catch it in bloom! → go.gardnermuseum.org/tickets

02/25/2025

"Waters of the Abyss: An Intersection of Spirit and Freedom" opens this Thursday, February 27. Discover why the Boston Art Review named it one of their must-see exhibitions! →

From a study of bolo ties to a performance art retrospective, these are the shows we’re most excited to catch as winter turns to spring.

02/20/2025

Isabella's life and legacy are celebrated in ‘ghost story,’ a new song cycle by Phil Kline that premieres this Sunday at the Gardner Museum.

🎟️ Tickets are still available: gardnermuseum.org/calendar/yarnwire

Read the story in the Boston The Boston Globe→
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/02/20/arts/isabella-stewart-gardner-museum-ghost-story-phil-kline/

The museum founder’s life and legacy are celebrated in "ghost story," a new song cycle by Phil Kline that premieres at the museum this weekend.

02/18/2025

Vibrant colors, biblical scenes, and a touch of unexpected censorship. What else is hiding in the Dutch Room’s Italian coffered ceiling? 🕵️

Find out in this week’s blog.

🔗 Get the whole story: go.gardnermuseum.org/3QuMjZr

02/16/2025

The museum is home to several iconic portraits of our founder—but this one might not be on your radar.

This tiny study of Isabella may have been a preparatory drawing for Zorn’s portrait in oil, on display in the Short Gallery. Much like his final painting, Gardner’s face is portrayed from the right; with her open mouth and curious look, she seems to engage directly with us.

Tap the link in bio to learn more—and see it for yourself in the Short Gallery on your next visit!

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🖼️: Anders Zorn, Study for Isabella Stewart Gardner in Venice, 1894. Pencil and red chalk on paper.

02/15/2025

🪻 Tickets are still available for the next Botanical Talk & Tour on February 21st!

Join a member of our horticulture staff to learn about the museum's living collection—and enjoy a special botanical-themed tour through the galleries.

This is a ticketed event, and space is limited. Explore the tour schedule and reserve your ticket at the link in bio!