Dear Friend,
After so much distancing, has there ever been a time when we needed the arts more? A study by the University of Pennsylvania found that nine out of ten arts participants report forming new connections through their arts experiences. Art museums like the BMA are essential community assets helping people connect with themselves, others, their city, and the world.
The BMA plays a vital role in enhancing Birmingham’s cultural identity by weaving the arts into the social fabric of our community. In 2022, the BMA hosted 45 public programs, presented 6 world-class exhibitions – FREE OF CHARGE– and cultivated over 60 community partnerships.
As the largest and most comprehensive municipal art museum in the Southeast, the Birmingham Museum of Art plays a significant role in our region’s art scene and provides an active cultural hub for our community.
This year, tens of thousands visited our collection, experiencing the transformative power of art. We began the spring with the ReFRAME party celebrating the opening of Expanding Darshan: Manjari Sharma, To See and Be Seen, which included a lecture featuring global artist Manjari Sharma, and the 11th Annual Holi Family Festival. In the months that followed, over 10,000 people attended our quarterly Heritage Festivals, bimonthly pop culture-themed Art After Five Series, special lectures, and weekly programs such as Art in Conversation, Highlights Tours, and ArtBreak.The BMA’s reach extended beyond our museum walls by providing free arts education opportunities to 1,500 students in schools and community centers across the Greater Birmingham Area.
Our successes were made possible by generous supporters like you, who understand the many ways in which museums help us discover the world around us. Your generous support is vital to the museum’s mission to spark the creativity, imagination, and liveliness of Birmingham by connecting all its people to the experience, meaning, and joy of art.
Please consider a gift to the Annual Fund today.
Together in art,
Graham C. Boettcher, Ph.D.
The R. Hugh Daniel Director