Key West Museum of Art & History and the Tennessee Williams Museum Joins Smithsonian Magazine’s Annual Museum Day
A temporary exhibition celebrating the island’s bicentennial is now on display at the Key West Museum of Art & History and will be open for viewing during this year’s Smithsonian Museum Day on September 17. (Photo Credit: Key West Art & Historical Society)
KEY WEST, FL – The Key West Museum of Art & History and the Tennessee Williams Museum will open their doors free of charge to all Museum Day ticketholders on Saturday, September 17, 2022, as part of Smithsonian Magazine’s Museum Day. The annual event allows museums, zoos and cultural centers from all 50 states to emulate the spirit of the Smithsonian Institution’s Washington, D.C.-based facilities, which offer free admission every day. This year’s event is sponsored by The Quaker Oats Company and Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
“It is an honor for two of the Key West Art & Historical Society’s museums to be included in Smithsonian Magazine’s Museum Day,” said Executive Director Michael Gieda. “It is our hope this special day brings new visitors ready to discover more about the extensive and unique art and history of Key West as depicted through numerous exhibits, videos, artifacts and more.”
The Key West Museum of Art & History is a world-class museum that preserves and shares the remarkable history of Key West and the Florida Keys, while also promoting the works of many local arts through its various exhibitions. In addition to permanent exhibits on subjects such as Henry Flagler’s Oversea Railway, WPA Artists and the Civil War in Key West, the museum is also home to the temporary exhibition highlighting Key West’s bicentennial. The museum is located at 281 Front Street and is open every day from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Also participating is the Society’s Tennessee Williams Museum, located at 513 Truman Avenue. Williams is one of the most influential 20th century American playwrights and was a resident of the island for nearly four decades. His works such as “The Glass Menagerie,” “A Streetcar Named Desire” and “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” are classics of the American stage which earned him two Pulitzer Prizes, Tony Awards, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He was part of the literary movement that resulted in Key West and the Florida Keys being recognized as the cultural and historical location it is today. Visitors can tour this educational exhibit to learn about Williams’ literary accomplishments and life in Key West through an extensive collection of photographs, models, first edition plays and books, rare newspaper and magazine articles, and a typewriter used by the author.
Museum Day tickets will be available for download at smithsonianmag.com/museumday/.
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