Westmoreland Museum of American Art

Westmoreland Museum of American Art has a significant and distinctive collection of paintings, sculptures, furniture, and more. Its collection beautifully describes the heritage of our nation and region and is designed to enrich, enlighten, and delight viewers of all ages.

You’ll find it easy and fun to learn more about the art through gallery guides and text panels. Use computers and self-guided audio tours to explore the Museum’s collection. And for those who care to delve deeper, you can take advantage of our incredible reference library and engaging educational programs. The Westmoreland Museum of American Art is a vital, ever-changing place. It is newly renovated and family-friendly. It is full of opportunities to explore your heritage, country, and the art that has captured it beautifully.

PERMANENT COLLECTION

Focusing mainly, although not exclusively, on portraiture, landscapes and still lifes, the Museum recently re-arranged its collection in a rather untraditional way. You can quickly discover how American art has developed and evolved by grouping paintings by subject, along with sculpture and decorative arts of the same style and period.

Here are a few of the treasures you can expect to explore: paintings, prints, watercolors, drawings, and sculptures by nationally recognized American artists such as Mary Cassatt, John Singleton Copley, William Michael Harnett, Robert Henri, Winslow Homer, John Singer Sargent, Paul Manship, and many more. You’ll also find beautiful examples of early nineteenth-century furniture.

SCENES OF INDUSTRY

In this exhibition on view in the Library, you’ll find powerful images documenting our region’s industrial heritage of steel and coal. Although the vast blast furnaces and steel mills no longer dominate the landscape, they vividly endure in these works of art. Depicted by nationally recognized and regionally known artists, this collection presents a visual evolution of over one hundred years. It shows the tremendous impact of local history on our nation’s history.

SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA LANDSCAPES

During the industrial revolution, artists like George Hetzel, Charles Linford, and Joseph Woodwell captured the rural splendor of Pennsylvania’s mountains, woodlands, and streams. Comparing these landscapes with our Scenes of Industry gives you a stunning “before and after” view of our region’s environment. It lets you experience the stylistic and social conditions that inspired artists to concentrate on these subject areas. Arranged with the paintings, you’ll also find decorative objects such as Redware and Salt-glazed stoneware, a Westmoreland County corner cupboard, blanket chests, and other furniture originating in Pennsylvania.

CHANGING EXHIBITIONS

Each year, the Museum brings in exciting traveling exhibitions. Often, these exhibits let you experience what’s happening in American art nationally. They may complement or fill a gap in our permanent collection, giving you a broader view of American art. Traveling exhibits feature various subjects, from historical American art to contemporary regional art. And you can look forward to our delightful holiday exhibition featuring hundreds of toys and trains each year.