Cohort Program

Building long-lasting relationships among museums around the nation.

About

The Art Bridges Cohort Program is committed to supporting multi-year exhibition partnerships among museums nationwide. The program builds on Art Bridges’ mission to expand access to American art across the United States and to empower museums to broaden traditional definitions of American art.

Originated in 2018, the Cohort Program (also known as the Art Bridges Initiative) has created seven museum cohorts led by institutions in Boston, Detroit, Fort Worth, Hartford, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. For each cohort, an organizing museum and its regional partners collaborate to create exhibitions that inspire and deepen engagement with local audiences.

Sharing collections and resources, the program’s dynamic partnerships will generate over eighty exhibitions that are content rich, include in-depth educational and interpretive materials, and are designed to meet a wide range of audience interests.

Additionally, presenting partners work with the Art Bridges Learning & Engagement team on programming to further deepen community engagement. The Cohort Program also fosters professional development exchanges between partners and across cohorts, facilitated by Art Bridges-supported staff at the organizing museums, including arts professionals of the Art Bridges Fellows Program.

Visitors to the Mattatuck Museum engage with artwork in A Face Like Mine
Visitors to the Mattatuck Museum engage with artwork in A Face Like Mine, which celebrates 100 years of African American figurative art. The exhibition was created in collaboration with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, as part of the Art Bridges Cohort Program.

Courtesy of Mattatuck Museum

Goals

  • Expand access to outstanding works of American art among audiences across the United States
  • Create opportunities to curate collaboratively using shared collections and resources
  • Foster professional-development exchange among all participating institutions
  • Form a nationwide network of institutions committed to presenting American art in innovative ways
  • Broaden the relevance of museums in the 21st century by piloting meaningful exhibitions with specific communities in mind

Amon Carter Museum of American Art Cohort

Museum partners in Texas are creating exhibitions rooted by the collection of the Amon Carter Museum of American Art.

Detroit Institute of Arts Cohort

Partners in Michigan are co-curating exhibitions that feature the Detroit Institute of Arts collection.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art Cohort

Partner museums in Southern California are co-organizing exhibitions with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art to provide Local Access.

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Cohort

Four partner museums in the Northeast are creating exhibitions centered around artworks from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Philadelphia Museum of Art Cohort

Eight partner museums across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania are organizing exhibitions anchored by Philadelphia Museum of Art artworks.

Smithsonian American Art Museum Cohort

After exhibiting selections from the Smithsonian American Art Museum collection, partners of the American West Consortium are presenting a collaboratively organized exhibition.

Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art Cohort

Three partner museums in the Southeast are sharing their collections alongside the Wadsworth Museum of Art in a series of exhibitions.

Are you interested in the Art Bridges Initiative?