Twenty years of art, architecture, and nature. Always free.
The Vision
In 2006, Glenstone opened its doors for the first time. The experience consisted of the Gallery building and a selection of outdoor sculptures set into a serene landscape; it was a new experience in the Washington, D.C. area: art, architecture, and nature as a destinational experience. From the beginning, admission to Glenstone was free and open to the public by appointment. In the last 20 years, Glenstone has done a lot - and we're only just beginning.
The Art
Glenstone's first exhibition on view from September 30, 2006 to January 14, 2009. The Inaugural Exhibition showcased iconic paintings, sculptures, and works on paper by American and European artists of the twentieth century. Organized chronologically, the exhibition offered a snapshot of the breadth of Glenstone’s collection.
Artists' Voices
Glenstone has interviewed numerous leading contemporary artists on the occasion of their exhibitions at the museum. Hear directly from artists about their materials, inspirations, creative practices, and more.
Twenty Years of Art... by the numbers
Since 2006, Glenstone has...
Hosted 57 exhibitions
Loaned 1,264 artworks to 207 institutions on 5 continents
Acquired 2,032 artworks
Published 29 books including original scholarship on contemporary artists
Welcomed over 750,000 visitors (and counting!)
Architecture
The first buildings built at Glenstone were designed by Charles Gwathmey of Gwathmey, Siegel, and Partners. The Gallery building hosts more than 9,000 square feet of exhibition space in two configurations: a stone-floored gallery lit by floor-to-ceiling windows and louvered skylights, and more traditional "white cube" space floored in end-grain cut Douglas fir. Speaking about the project in 2005, Gwathmey said "I think that's really what makes this so enriched and unique... The art and architecture are not disengaged and are not incompatible philosophically. They're mutually engaged and make a much more dynamic experience."
Click the button below to examine never-before-shared sketches of the Gallery building by Charles Gwathmey.
Expanding Glenstone
In 2018, Glenstone opened a major expansion: The Pavilions, designed by architect Thomas Phifer of Thomas Phifer and Partners. This building increased Glenstone's exhibition space by an additional 50,000 square feet and features rooms designed in close collaboration with artists to hold long-term installations as well as rotating exhibition spaces.
On November 28, 2018, Glenstone Museum held a public panel to discuss the origins of the museum’s expansion. Read an excerpt of that conversation, braiding architecture, art, and nature, below.
For an architect, the museum building is the ultimate project. It engages the past, present, and future, establishing and enriching the critical dialogue between art and architecture. It is the bridge, the connector, the extender, literally and philosophically, of the cultural legacy and the continuum. The museum is the accessor and the instigator to discovery.
Nature
When it opened, Glenstone set itself apart from many museums by offering art in both indoor and expansive outdoor settings. Early outdoor sculptures on the grounds showed the power of unifying art and nature. Ellsworth Kelly's Untitled 2005 steel totem was sited next to the water and planted by native river birches, whose own heights have come to rival the sculpture. Contour 290, a site-specific commission by Richard Serra, established the early primacy of the landscape as a theme at Glenstone.
Since then, Glenstone has planted well over 13,000 trees on its 300-acre campus, restored miles of streambeds, and cultivated dozens of acres of organically maintained native meadows.
Foxes, and Turkeys, and Deer
Oh my!
Glenstone's landscape is the year-round home to a wide array of native animals and plants. Learn more about dozens of these residents on our Flora & Fauna page.
A year in the Meadows
Over the past decade, Glenstone's meadows have matured into complex ecosystems that are home to deer, turkeys, foxes, countless birds and bugs, and dozens of native plant species. A few years ago, Glenstone introduced fire as a management practice in the landscape. Browse these photos to see what one year in a fire-managed meadow looks like.
Contour 290 and the Origins of Glenstone
A rust-colored ribbon of steel snakes through the meadows at Glenstone Museum. 223 feet long and 15 ½ feet high, walking alongside it feels like gliding past the hull of a gigantic ship. Hawks perch there, deer graze nearby, and native meadows and woodlands hug the sculpture on both sides. How did it come to be at Glenstone?
Learn more about Contour 290, and the beginnings of Glenstone Museum, below.
