Celebrate the Holiday Season at the Milwaukee Art Museum

– Visitors can enjoy special holiday happenings at the Museum including Artful Holiday, Museum Store Sunday and shopping events, live music and snowflake decorations.   –

Milwaukee, Wis. – October 30, 2019 – Visitors to the Milwaukee Art Museum can enjoy a wide variety of activities and events to celebrate the winter holiday season. Kids and families can make take-home gifts at Kohl’s Art Generation Family Sundays: Artful Holiday, shop at Museum Store Sunday and see new snowflake decorations of favorite works in the Collection that will hang in Windhover Hall. 

“The Museum is always a beautiful place to spend quality time with friends and family, whether they’re from the area or visiting,” said Amanda C. Peterson, Director of Marketing and Communications, Milwaukee Art Museum. “With lovely views of the winter landscape out the windows, three great temporary exhibitions and the inspiring space to stretch your legs and your imagination, this is the perfect time to visit.”

On Nov. 15, kick off the season with MAM After Dark: Friendsgiving, from 7–11p.m. Gather together and cozy up for a night of tasty treats, games, crafting, photo ops and F-R-I-E-N-D-S themed trivia. Visitors can also shop at the local artists market and enjoy live performances, in honor of Native American Heritage Month. Admission is free for Museum Members,  $12 in advance and $14 at the door.

At Kohl’s Art Generation Family Sundays: Artful Holiday on Dec. 8, kids and families can discover the art of printmaking in the Landfall Press exhibition, meet area printmakers, watch demonstrations and make art to give as gifts all while enjoying the sounds of the season, 10 a.m.–4 p.m.

On Nov. 22–24, Kohl’s Color Wheels will visit Holiday Folk Fair International at State Fair Park. Kids and families can make art together from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.  

The Museum’s youngest visitors will get to drop in and make art at Play Date with Art: Bold Brushstrokes on Dec. 13 and Play Date with Art: Winter Wonderful, Jan. 11. Both events feature hands-on activities for ages 0–5, complete with Singing Time at 10:30 a.m. and 11:15 a.m.

Shopping and gift giving:

Museum visitors can find the perfect gift at the Milwaukee Art Museum Store. On Museum Store Sunday Dec. 1, the Store will again take part in the international annual event that offers special shopping experiences, uniquely curated gifts and live music, along with trunk shows and free gift wrapping. All purchases support Museum exhibitions and programming. 

At the Member Holiday Shopping Party Nov. 20, local artist Hannah Jablonski will debut this year’s exclusive ornament, and be available for signing throughout the evening. The after-hours private event for Members will have live music, complementary wine and appetizers, discounts and free parking in the heated underground garage. 

Members can also receive extra savings on purchases and free gift wrapping at the Museum Store during Double Discount Days on Nov. 29, and Dec. 1, 5, 12, 19 and 26.  

In conjunction with A Modern Vision: European Masterworks from The Phillips Collection, an exhibition store within the Baker/Rowland gallery space will offer gifts and products inspired by the artists and images highlighted in the exhibition.

Holiday gift guides on the Museum Store website (store.mam.org) will highlight unique items and gift ideas for CEOs, co-workers, pet-lovers, families, friends and more. Free shipping will be available for all online orders of $25 or more Nov. 29–Dec. 19, and Museum Members can make any occasion special with complimentary gift wrapping offered on all purchases year-round.

Gift memberships to the Milwaukee Art Museum are available throughout the year, but make a special holiday gift for art lovers. During the holiday season, memberships purchased in-person at the Museum include an exclusive gift. Each level of membership provides free admission to the Museum, invitations to Member Preview Celebrations, discounts at the Museum Store and Café Calatrava and on parking, and free access to Family Sundays, MAM After Dark, gallery talks, lectures and more. Gift orders received by Friday, Dec. 13 will guarantee arrival of the membership package in the mail by Christmas, and orders placed by Dec. 9 will receive a full membership package before the start of Hanukkah.

Visitors can also enjoy the sounds of the season in Windhover Hall with live musical events that are free and open to the public. 

Nov. 30, 11 a.m.–12 p.m.: Carolers from the Milwaukee Rep’s Christmas Carol
Dec. 10, 2:30–4 p.m.: The Zafa Collective
Dec. 14, 11 a.m.–12 p.m.: Roubik Music Studio Holiday Concert
Dec. 15, 2–3 p.m.: Barcel Brioso Holiday Concert
Dec. 21, 1–2 p.m.: Bruce Anthony Holiday Guitar Concert
Dec. 22, 2:30–3:15 p.m.: Northshore Suzuki Strings Holiday Concert

A Variety of Exhibitions:

Opening Nov. 15 in the Baker/Rowland Galleries, A Modern Vision: European Masterworks from The Phillips Collection features masterworks by many of the best-known artists of European modernism including Claude Monet, Vincent van Gogh, Edgar Degas and Pablo Picasso. 

Beginning Nov. 29, visitors can experience the Museum’s popular and recently conserved eighteenth-century crèche (or nativity scene). The crèche and its setting will be on view on Level 1, Gallery S107. On Dec. 19 at noon, visitors will have the opportunity to take an in-depth look at the crèche with Catherine Sawinski, Assistant Curator of European Art.

Portrait of Milwaukee, on view through March 1 in the Herzfeld Center for Photography and Media Arts, portrays the city, industry and people of Milwaukee through photos drawn from the Museum’s Collection, the Milwaukee Public Library and Harley-Davidson Museum, among other local collections. 

Landfall Press: Five Decades of Printmaking in the Bradley Family Gallery celebrates the 50th anniversary of one of the country’s most renowned printers and publishers with nearly 100 prints, many from the Museum’s Landfall Press Archive. 

Holiday Hours:

The Museum will be closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve Day and Christmas Day, and open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 31, for New Year’s Eve and Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2020, for New Year’s Day. The Kohl’s Art Generation Studio is open for individuals and families 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day the Museum is open. 

Additional Seasonal Programming:

Dec. 5, 10 a.m.–8 p.m.: Free admission thanks to Meijer Free First Thursdays
Jan. 1, 1:30 p.m.: Drop-in Tour: New Year’s Resolutions
Saturdays, 10:30 a.m.: Story Time in the Galleries

Unless otherwise noted, all programs are free for Museum Members, free with Museum admission and free for children ages 12 and under thanks to Kohl’s Cares.