Housatonic Museum of Art
The Housatonic Museum of Art (HMA) is home to one of the premier college art collections in the United States. Its collection offers students and the community alike the opportunity to view works that span the history of art from the ancient to the contemporary. Unique to the Housatonic Community College campus, this permanent collection is on continuous display throughout the 300,000 square foot facility, offering a rare opportunity for both art enthusiasts and casual observers to view and interact with the art on a daily basis.
The Museum, founded by Burt Chernow, Professor Emeritus (1933-1997), is dedicated to the presentation, preservation and interpretation of objects of artistic or historic value. The collection provides a basis for exhibitions and educational programs for faculty, students and the public; for research and study by scholars, historians and curators, for special lectures and symposia, and for cultural and educational enrichment of the academic community and public-at-large. Under the direction of Robbin Zella, the Museum also presents lectures, programs and changing exhibitions in the Burt Chernow Galleries, and continues to be recognized as a major cultural resource for the Greater Bridgeport area and the region.
When the Housatonic Museum of Art Museum first opened in 1967, Burt Chernow, professor of art and art history and founding director, envisioned creating a college art collection of modern and contemporary art that would be accessible to all students, all the time, displayed throughout the campus. In his first year, he collected ninety-seven works by Allan D’Arcangelo, Alex Katz, Henry Pearson, Sylvia Stone, Larry Zox, and Elaine De Kooning, among others. Chernow also began to acquire work from Connecticut artists associated with the Silvermine Guild and the Westport Art Center where he and his wife, Ann Chernow, were both active members.
Today, Housatonic Museum of Art’s permanent collection continues to grow through gifts and donations and now includes the arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas as well as renowned contemporary artists such as Jeff Koons, Cindy Sherman, Jenny Holzer and Felix Gonzalez-Torres, to name a few.