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Friends of the Wichita Art Museum

Friends of the Wichita Art Museum The Friends is a dynamic social and volunteer organization that supports the Wichita Art Museum through special events, programs, and fundraisers. WAMM, Inc.

In 1960, the city of Wichita invited citizens to come together as a tax-exempt organization to raise money for the Wichita Art Museum through memberships and other income-generating activities. was formed, and in 1976, the name changed to the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum.

With an initial deposit of $293,105.07 in 1997, the Friends established what has now become a three million dollar endowment through its fundraising activities, gently used Book Sales, luncheon lecture series and a prestigious symposium that spotlights an important area of American art.

Operating as usual

Mark your calendar for the Holiday Open House. Start your holiday with a festive event for the entire f family.
11/09/2022

Mark your calendar for the Holiday Open House. Start your holiday with a festive event for the entire f family.

10/13/2022

Looking forward to the opening of Psper Dreams this weekend! It should be spectacular.

FWAM Mini Book Sale Saturday, October 15th from 10:00-3:00.
10/11/2022

FWAM Mini Book Sale Saturday, October 15th from 10:00-3:00.

A wonderful night was had at the FWAM party. The food, drinks, entertainment, and company was the best. Thank you to our...
10/10/2022

A wonderful night was had at the FWAM party. The food, drinks, entertainment, and company was the best. Thank you to our hosts Gena and Steve Dillard for having us in your beautiful home, and yard. Thank you also to the social committee. It was a perfect evening.

Friends of the Wichita Art Museum had a fun day on the Art Bus Hop. It was a great day viewing Wichita’s impressive publ...
09/18/2022

Friends of the Wichita Art Museum had a fun day on the Art Bus Hop. It was a great day viewing Wichita’s impressive public art.

The Friends of the Wichita Art Museum presented Patricia McDonnell a painting by Roger Shimomura. This is in honor of  h...
09/12/2022

The Friends of the Wichita Art Museum presented Patricia McDonnell a painting by Roger Shimomura. This is in honor of her leadership as the Director of the Wichita Art Museum. This painting will be part of the museum’s permanent collection. Patricia will be missed, and we wish her a wonderful retirement.

Join the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum for a lunch and lecture with Anne Kraybill, WAM’s new Director/CEOMonday, Oct...
09/10/2022

Join the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum for a lunch and lecture with Anne Kraybill, WAM’s new Director/CEO
Monday, October 3
11:30 am Doors open
Noon Lunch
12:45 pm Presentation.
RVSP deadline is Wednesday, September 21
Tickets are $35.00
Purchase tickets online at wichitaartmuseum.org/artonamonday, or mail a check payable to Friends of the Art Museum, to Friends of the Wichita Art Museum, PO Box 780223, Wichita, Ks. 67278-0223
We hope to see you there.

Friends, See you Monday, September 12 at 12:30!
08/31/2022

Friends, See you Monday, September 12 at 12:30!

This exhibition is SO cool!
07/24/2022

This exhibition is SO cool!

Have you seen the stunning, spectacular glass work by artist Beth Lipman? If you missed Exhibition Opening Day for "Beth Lipman: All in Time" last Saturday, visit this week and take in "All in Time," which follows her retrospective at the MAD | Museum of Arts and Design in NYC.

Many thanks to our wonderful donors, sponsors and patrons!
This exhibition has been generously underwritten by presenting sponsor F. Price Cossman Memorial Trust, INTRUST Bank, Trustee. Sondra M. Langel provided major underwriting, and DeVore Foundation is a principal sponsor. Additional generous support has been provided by Sue and Fred Berry, Sonia Greteman and Chris Brunner, Dr. Harold and Mrs. Evelyn Gregg, Terry and Lou Heldman, and Trish Higgins.

2022 exhibitions and public programs are generously supported by the Downing Foundation. All museum exhibitions receive generous sponsorship from the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum and the City of Wichita- Government.

04/28/2022

Don’t miss “Books and all that Jazz” this weekend at the Wichita Art Museum. Music, food, drinks and amazin books at ridiculously great prices. Friday evening 5-8 pm, Saturday 10-5 and Sunday 11-5. It’s going to be great!

03/19/2022

The “BIG” book fair, “Books and all that Jazz” is coming April 29-May 1. If you have gently used books you no longer need or want, drop them by the Museum in the drop box on the north side of the parking lot. Your donation will help the Friends raise funds to support the Museum. Watch for more news about the book sale soon!

03/08/2022
wichitartmuseum.org

Don’t miss this month’s Art on a Monday, March 21. It will feature Trish VanOsdel, Vice President and secretary/treasurer of Reuben Saunders Gallery. She will share the story of the gallery and it’s role in Wichita’s arts community.

Deadline for reservations is Tuesday, March 15. Tickets are $35 per person and may be purchased online at Wichitartmuseum.org/artonamonday.

The fun begins at 11:30 with a cash bar reception, lunch at noon, with the presentation beginning at 12:45. Join us!

02/07/2022

Looking forward to the American Art Deco Exhibition opening this weekend at WAM. It’s going to be terrific.

11/10/2020


MINI BOOK SALE: Friends of WAM will hold its next mini book sales on 11/27/20 & 11/28/20, 10:00-3:00 ea day. A variety of book categories available at reasonable prices. Masks required. Held in conjunction with Winter Art Mania.

11/02/2020
museum.org

HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE—Sun, 12/6/20, 2:00-4:00–FWAM invites you to warm up with holiday cheer at WAM! BYOC - bring your own camera for an outside Photo Op as Santa will be taking a toymaking break to swoop in on his sleigh w live reindeer (socially-distanced line and socially-distanced photo). FREE Museum Admission! Holiday shopping galore inside at the WAM Museum Store. See the WAM art exhibitions. The Muse Museum Cafe will be open for food & beverage purchases. Treats and individual art-making bags will be handed out to kids.

Leave it to the artist to leave his mark on history.From Artnet News: An Artist Is Transforming the Parking Lot of the Q...
05/28/2020

Leave it to the artist to leave his mark on history.

From Artnet News: An Artist Is Transforming the Parking Lot of the Queens Museum Into a Tribute to Health Care Workers ‘So Big It Can Be Seen by Satellite’

Artist Jorge Rodríguez-Gerada's mural appears in one of New York City's hardest-hit neighborhoods.

😉
03/26/2020

😉

03/26/2020

Postponed or cancelled until further notice. 😔

MAR27 Postponed until July 17: Interactive Film Screening: Grease
Tomorrow 6 PM • 376 guests
MAR28 Cancelled: Mini Used Book Sale
Sat 10 AM • 583 guests
MAR28 Postponed: Family ArtVenture: WAM BAM Disco Time
Sat 11 AM • 207 guests
APR1 Cancelled: Senior Wednesday: Mid-America All-Indian Center
Wed 10 AM • Myron Ackerman is going
APR9 Postponed: Curator Talk with Candice Hopkins
Thu 6 PM • 67 guests
APR12 Cancelled: Drop-In Tour: Preston Singletary
Sun 2 PM • 33 guests
APR14 Postponed: Volunteer Appreciation Reception
Tue 5 PM • Christopher Gulick is going
APR21 Cancelled: Tuesday Tour: Preston Singletary
Tue 2 PM • Christopher Gulick is going
APR24 Cancelled: Members-Only Late 'til 8
Fri 5 PM • 37 guests
APR25 Postponed: Renovation Opening Day Extravaganza
Sat 11 AM • 129 guests
APR25 Cancelled: Docent Dialogues in the Galleries: Preston Singletary
Sat 1 PM • 18 guests

Mourning the close of museums.
03/25/2020

Mourning the close of museums.

Indeed, there may be "safety" in art.From Artnet News: Want to avoid catching the coronavirus? Maybe you should have bee...
03/21/2020

Indeed, there may be "safety" in art.

From Artnet News: Want to avoid catching the coronavirus? Maybe you should have been an artist.

Fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators, have a remarkably low risk for contacting the disease, according to new data compiled by the New York Times.

Art is the second-safest career, with a physical proximity score of nine and a disease exposure of zero. That ranks it behind only loggers and just ahead of authors and writers, who are at zero on exposure but 14 on proximity.

Graphic designers have comparatively less risk: they score zero for exposure and 34 for how close they typically get to other people.

Thank you to our loyal WAM community. The world has turned inside out in the past week. A sense of belonging means so mu...
03/20/2020

Thank you to our loyal WAM community.

The world has turned inside out in the past week. A sense of belonging means so much more in anxious days. We thank you—our incredible WAM community—for all the ways you connect and care about the Wichita Art Museum. We’ve honestly felt it this week, as many reached out to the museum. The support is so very appreciated.

Stay safe, remain healthy. We will be back in action and together again. It can’t come soon enough, and we will reach out virtually during this period as we weather a global crisis. We thank you for support of the Wichita Art Museum.

David Hockney from his home in Normandy, France, creates a new painting to brighten the spirits of all those sequestered...
03/19/2020

David Hockney from his home in Normandy, France, creates a new painting to brighten the spirits of all those sequestered from Covid-19.

FWAM board member, Mickie Moore Brown, shares her "Doors and Windows on the World" with us--photos she took on a recent ...
03/16/2020

FWAM board member, Mickie Moore Brown, shares her "Doors and Windows on the World" with us--photos she took on a recent trip to Egypt.

Bookies working hard for the big may2,3 sale at WAM
03/16/2020

Bookies working hard for the big may2,3 sale at WAM

What the world is missing during the museum shut down in Italy.
03/14/2020

What the world is missing during the museum shut down in Italy.

We've lost two patrons of the arts and past FWAM board officers who paved the way for the rest of us. Paula Varner and D...
03/10/2020

We've lost two patrons of the arts and past FWAM board officers who paved the way for the rest of us. Paula Varner and Dora Timmerman Bayer, may you R.I.P.

I got to say goodbye to Dora without knowing it. I stopped in to see my friend Bev Hoover, also a past FWAM president, at Larksfield a month ago, and Dora Timmerman Bayer and her husband Bob came into our room to visit. Dora was an extraordinary person. We worked on the restoration of the Soldiers and Sailors monument on the lawn of the Old Courthouse, and we were on again-off again board members of the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum for at least 25 years. Dora did more to introduce art to the children of Wichita than anyone in this city. A beautiful, soft spoken woman, loaded with smarts and talent. We've lost a good one in Dora.

What can I say about Paula? Just a sharp, talented woman who knew the history of the Wichita Art Museum like the back of her hand. She worked tirelessly with Pam Kingsbury, Steve Gleissner, the late Mary Ellen Barrier and others who served on the FWAM board at the time to start our on-building endowment which benefits the Wichita Art Museum yearly. Paula was the go-to woman if anyone had a question about the museum or any community development for that matter. Paula had her fingers on the pulse of Wichita a city she loved and served well into her 90s.

These two fabulous, powerful women will be greatly missed.

The Met is having a party in its honor on April 13 of this year. The museum that sees 7 million visitors pass through it...
03/07/2020

The Met is having a party in its honor on April 13 of this year. The museum that sees 7 million visitors pass through its doors to view 1.5 million collection objects covering 5,000 years of history will be 150 years on that date. Big plans, including a huge cake, dinners and dancing in the museum, and invitations to every living artist in its collection, are in the works. Look for the Empire State Building to be lit up in red for the celebration.

Explore our museum store. Lots of unique gifts and treasures!
03/04/2020

Explore our museum store. Lots of unique gifts and treasures!

Perhaps taking a cue from WAM with its current Preston Singletary exhibit, Artnet News reports:  Native American Art Has...
03/04/2020

Perhaps taking a cue from WAM with its current Preston Singletary exhibit, Artnet News reports:

Native American Art Has Become a Sleeper Sensation in Museums and the Art Market Alike.

Check out the unique cards at the WAM store!
02/28/2020

Check out the unique cards at the WAM store!

The Friends enjoyed their first trip so well, they're doing an encore. This time to The Momentary, a satellite to Benton...
02/27/2020

The Friends enjoyed their first trip so well, they're doing an encore. This time to The Momentary, a satellite to Benton, AR's famous Crystal Bridges. The Friends leave by motor coach April 23-25, 2020.

Address

1400 W Museum Boulevard
Wichita, KS
67203

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 12pm - 5pm

Telephone

(316) 268-4921

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Thanks to Wichita Mom for this holiday list! You can see Santa and Mrs. Claus this Sunday afternoon during the Friends of WAM Holiday Open House, sponsored by the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum. In addition to photos with Santa, Lamphouse Photo Booth Co. will be here to capture your family's holiday-themed portrait.
The Wichita Eagle has a long list of holiday-related events, so make sure you have Sunday, December 4 on your calendar when the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum have their annual Friends of the Wichita Art Museum Holiday Open House. Santa and Mrs. Claus will be there!

https://www.kansas.com/entertainment/holidays/article268260327.html?ac_cid=DM721723&ac_bid=1296221310
Today is the last day to see stunning glass in the show we organized titled "Beth Lipman: All in Time." This exhibition has been generously underwritten by presenting sponsor F. Price Cossman Memorial Trust, INTRUST Bank, Trustee. Sondra M. Langel provided major underwriting, and DeVore Foundation is a principal sponsor. Additional generous support has been provided by Sue and Fred Berry, Sonia Greteman and Chris Brunner, Dr. Harold and Mrs. Evelyn Gregg, Terry and Lou Heldman, and Trish Higgins.

2022 exhibitions and public programs are generously supported by the Downing Foundation. All museum exhibitions receive generous sponsorship from the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum and the City of Wichita- Government.
Julia guided Friends of the Wichita Art Museum on a tour of the art in our building last week! KLC and the Kansas Health Foundation Conference Center houses a rich and varied collection of painting, sculpture, photography and fiber art by Kansas artists.

Learn more about the intersection of art and leadership in our book In Plain View here: https://kansasleadershipcenter.org/store/in-plain-view-klc-art-collection/
Today marks the beginning of , and we're pleased to be included in Visit Wichita's list of events and activities with a new exhibition, "Power to the People: Mexican Prints from the Great War to the Cold War." This exhibition is generously supported by City of Wichita- Government and the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum. 2022 exhibitions and public programs are generously supported by the Downing Foundation. Annual exhibition funding is provided by the Judy Slawson Family Exhibition Fund and the Charles E. Baker and Jim V. Phillips Exhibition Fund.

Special thanks to Teresa Molina, assistant professor of Spanish at Friends University, for advising and for translating "Power to the People" exhibition signage and labels for each work of art for our Spanish-speaking visitors.

WAM agradece especialmente a Teresa Molina, profesora de español en la Universidad de Friends, por el asesoramiento y la traducción de la señalización de la exposición Power to the People y de las etiquetas de cada obra de arte para los visitantes de habla hispana.

https://www.visitwichita.com/blog/post/honoring-hispanic-heritage-month-in-wichita/
Have you seen the stunning, spectacular glass work by artist Beth Lipman? If you missed Exhibition Opening Day for "Beth Lipman: All in Time" last Saturday, visit this week and take in "All in Time," which follows her retrospective at the MAD | Museum of Arts and Design in NYC.

Many thanks to our wonderful donors, sponsors and patrons!
This exhibition has been generously underwritten by presenting sponsor F. Price Cossman Memorial Trust, INTRUST Bank, Trustee. Sondra M. Langel provided major underwriting, and DeVore Foundation is a principal sponsor. Additional generous support has been provided by Sue and Fred Berry, Sonia Greteman and Chris Brunner, Dr. Harold and Mrs. Evelyn Gregg, Terry and Lou Heldman, and Trish Higgins.

2022 exhibitions and public programs are generously supported by the Downing Foundation. All museum exhibitions receive generous sponsorship from the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum and the City of Wichita- Government.
Tons of tomes! The Friends of the Wichita Art Museum’s “Books and All That Jazz” continues today with live music & performances by Wichita High School East & Buckner Performing Arts Magnet Elementary School from Wichita Public Schools + Roxy's Downtown & more. Join us for Family ArtVenture with free artmaking activities from 11am to 3pm.
What's on the Wichita Eagle's list for this weekend? The Friends of the Wichita Art Museum's Books and All That Jazz fundraising event, which starts tonight at 5 pm & goes through the weekend. In addition to hundreds of books, we have three days of activities and performances. See the full schedule: https://wichitaartmuseum.org/whats-on/books-and-all-that-jazz/

https://www.kansas.com/entertainment/article260821072.html?ac_cid=DM640051&ac_bid=-283392287
Thanks to Visit Wichita for including us on their list! Make sure your calendars are marked for the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum's big book fair, Books and All That Jazz, starting on Friday night, April 29. Books, books, and more books!
The Wall Street Journal, in their review of the Denver Art Museum's "Whistler to Cassatt" exhibition, called our "Mother and Child" painting by Mary Cassatt a "masterpiece!" How fortunate we were to hear from the exhibition curator, Dr. Timothy Standring, back in October during the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum's Howard E. Wooden Lecture, as he gave us a behind-the-scenes look on the making of this fabulous exhibition.
The Friends of the Wichita Art Museum will have Santa & Mrs. Claus here this Sunday afternoon, December 5, during their free Friends of the Wichita Art Museum Holiday Open House. Meet Sparkle the reindeer from Fulton Valley Farms A Country Christmas, too!
Don’t miss the Friends of the Wichita Art Museum’s Blowout Book Sale today & tomorrow. We have tons of tomes in 35 categories!
The career of Will Barnet, born in 1911, "spanned many of the great art movements of 20th-century America. In his early years, Barnet embraced the social realism of the 1930s, making paintings and prints that grappled with the devastating poverty of the Great Depression. In the 1940s and 50s, Barnet turned to abstraction and painted flat, hard-edged geometric shapes that lacked any obvious reference to the observable world. By the early 1960s, however, Barnet had abandoned pure abstraction and returned to depicting the human body—mostly images of his family. He developed a style that would characterize the next 50 years of his career.

"Chess Game" pictures Barnet’s daughter, Ona, in the New York City brownstone the family began renting in the late 1960s. Barnet was fascinated by the 1901 building and used it as the setting for many of his prints and paintings during this period. The artist was particularly interested in the home’s original woodwork—slanting floors, old staircases, bannisters, windows, and doorways. In both his figural and abstract work, Barnet juxtaposed strong verticals with horizontals and curves with right angles.

Image: Will Barnet, "Chess Game," 1973. Oil on canvas, 43 1/4 x 33 inches. Wichita Art Museum, Museum purchase, Friends of the Wichita Art Museum
Book donations needed! The Friends of the Wichita Art Museum are wanting gently used books (no magazines or encyclopedias, please) for the Mini Used Book Sale on June 8. Do you have unneeded books on your bookshelf? Bring them to the Wichita Art Museum--the dropbox is on the north side of the museum's parking lot. And know that your book donations to the Friends, and proceeds from book sales, help support the exhibitions and events at WAM.
Lovely lay out and array of art
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