Collection

As the first public art museum in the United States we paved the way for encyclopedic museums across the country.  Founded by Daniel Wadsworth in 1842, the Atheneum opened two years later with seventy-nine paintings and three sculptures, and today the collection exceeds 50,000 works of art. Our collections are the result of active acquisitions by patrons, directors and curators who continued Wadsworth’s dedication to collecting and supporting the work of living artists.