Current Exhibitions
On view now
Four indigenous children in sunglasses and traditional clothes run across a dessert field with wind turbines behind them
Air
July 16 - December 11, 2022
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Air makes the invisible visible, through contemporary art that explores air from environmental, social justice, and cultural perspectives.

a replica of an ancient mesoamerican sculpture of a child glazed bright yellow with a pattern of silhouetted children across the body, the sculoture sits in a black cage
salt 15: Horacio Rodriguez
January 22 - November 13, 2022
a swirling circle of symbols and lines in bright blues, pinks and greens on black background
ACME Lab | David Rios Ferreira: Transcending Time and Space
March 19 - December 4, 2022

Featuring work by Denae Shanidiin

The seven muralists of 2020: From here on out posing infront of a mural in the UMFA Great Hall
2020: From here on out
On view in the G.W. Anderson Family Great Hall

In 2020, artists created numerous murals across Salt Lake City in response to the global pandemic and racial injustice. These public works reflect our city’s pain and frustration but also our hopes and demands for a better future.

a black and white photograph of a women standing in the large entry to a ruined building made of rocks in a desert
Digital Exhibitions
Explore the UMFA's Collections from home

The UMFA's digital exhibitions highlight the past through dynamic curatorial exploration of the collections of both the Museum and the J. Willard Marriott Library at the University of Utah. Learn from the comfort of your own home today. 

Unidentified Artist, Kuba peoples, Democratic Republic of Congo, Prestige Panel, raffia palm fiber and pigment, Owen D. Mort, Jr. Collection of African Art, assisted by the George S. and Dolores Dore Eccles Foundation, UMFA1985.053.304.
Arts of Africa
Permanent Collection

The scope of artistic practice from twenty-one African cultures

Edmonia Lewis (America), Hiawatha and Minnehaha, 1868, Marble, Collection of the Utah Museum of Fine Arts Purchased with funds from an anonymous donor, the Emma Eccles Jones Foundation, and the Marriner S. Eccles Foundation. UMFA2018.2.1 and UMFA2018.2.2
American and Regional Art
Permanent Collection

Exploring westward expansion 

Ku Ch'iao (Chinese, 1614-1695 or later), Snowy Mountains, 1691, ink and color on silk, purchased with funds from the William H. and Wilma T. Gibson Endowment, UMFA2105.2.1.
Chinese Art
Permanent Collection

China's celebrated ceramic tradition

Abraham Susenier (Dutch, ca. 1620-1668), Still Life with a Lobster, Römer, Oysters, Grapes, and a Knife,ca. 1660s, oil on canvas, 21 x 25 1/2 in., purchased with funds from the Emma Eccles Jones Foundation, conserved with funds from the Ann K. Stewart Docent and Volunteer Conservation Fund, UMFA2003.34.1
European Art
Permanent Collection

The progression and practice of art-making across five centuries

UMFA Art of Japan Gallery with metal raptor sculpture and samurai suit
Japanese Art: Adaptation and Transformation
Permanent Collection

Exploring how Japanese artists over the last thousand years have responded to internal and external events and influences in their art-making. 

Sarcophagus, Roman, Italy, Late Roman Empire, ca. 325–330, Greek mainland marble, purchased with funds from the Marriner S. Eccles Foundation for the Marriner S. Eccles Collection of Masterworks, UMFA 1989.005.002.
Ancient Mediterranean Art
Permanent Collection

Intriguing funerary objects from Egyptian, Greek, and Roman cultures

Vessel with Political Scene, Guatemala, Petén region, Maya culture, 600–900, earthenware and pigment, purchased with funds from Friends of the Art Museum, UMFA1984.002.
Ancient Mesoamerican Art
Permanent Collection

The artistic traditions of western Mexico, Olmec, and Mayan cultures

Strips of automotive tires are attached at a center mount which is in turn attached to a painted black steel pipe stand on an "X" shaped base. The strips of tires form spiral shapes that have been incorporated into the form of the sculpture.
Modern and Contemporary Art
Permanent Collection

A look at the diversity of global artistic production post 1945

Unidentified artist, New Ireland, Papua New Guinea, Tatanua Mask, twentieth century, wood, fiber, prickly fruit, lime, pigment, Ulfert Wilke Collection, purchased with funds from Friends of the Art Museum, UMFA1983.001.009.
Arts of the Pacific
Permanent Collection

The dynamic and diverse art practices of earth's largest region

Shiva as Lord of Dance (Nataraja), Southern India, Chola dynasty, ca. 12th-13th century, bronze, gift of the Christensen Fund to commemorate founding Director E. Frank Sanguinetti's 84th birthday, UMFA2001.11.1.
South Asian Art
Permanent Collection

Celebrating the art of Hinduism and Buddhism

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