The cold months of winter offer a perfect time to support your local Louisiana museums and exhibit halls by taking a look at what’s new since the last time you may have visited—and if museums haven’t been on your to-do list in a while, maybe this would be a good habit to cultivate in 2021. 

With many museums still operating at 50 percent capacity since emerging from the COVID shutdown last summer, they are moving forward with new exhibits whose themes are shaping up to capture just about any interest you can imagine. 

Check them out at your leisure, and pat yourself on the back for supporting the arts in your community. It’s almost certain that you’ll learn something you never knew.

If you need some starter ideas to help you plan, we’re sharing some unique exhibitions below, They are listed in order of their appearance dates in Louisiana museums. 

Jacob Riis: How the Other Half Lives

Louisiana’s Old State Capitol

By taking photographs to accompany newspaper articles he wrote for the New York Tribune and the Eastern Star, reporter Jacob Riis became a pioneer photojournalist in documenting how the poor worked and lived in New York City. His immersive photographic display includes some life-size photos.

Dates: Through March 19

Admission: Free

Website: LA State Capitol

Hours:

• Tuesday through Friday: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Saturday: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
• Closed Sunday

Address:
Louisiana’s Old State Capitol
100 North Blvd. at River Road
Baton Rouge, LA 70801 (map)

Phone: (225) 342-0500

BUILT: Sculpture from the Permanent Collection

Ogden Museum of Southern Art

BUILT draws from Ogden Museum of Southern Art’s collection to test how Southern artists engage different mediums and practices to explore the power of sculptural form.

Dates: February 27 – July 25

Admission: See ticket options

Website: ogdenmuseum.org

Hours: Open 7 days a week, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Address:
925 Camp Street
New Orleans, LA 70130 (map)

Phone: (504) 539-9650

Buddha and Shiva, Lotus and Dragon: Masterworks from the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection at Asia Society

New Orleans Museum of Art

Nearly 70 of the finest examples of Asian art in America, collected by the Rockefellers from the 1940s through the ‘70s, will be showcased in this exhibition on loan from the Asia Society Museum.

Dates: March 6 – May 30

Admission:

• Members are free
• $15.00 adults
• $10.00 seniors (65+) & active military with ID
• $8.00 university students with ID
• Free admission for visitors age 19 and younger courtesy of the Helis Foundation
• Healthcare workers and first responders are free through March 3, 2021. This includes admission to the Besthoff Sculpture Garden.
• Thursdays are FREE admission days for Louisiana residents, courtesy of The Helis Foundation. (This does not include admission to the Besthoff Sculpture Garden.)

Website: noma.org

Hours: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Address:
One Collins C. Diboll Circle, City Park
New Orleans, LA 70124 (map)

Phone: (504) 658-4100

The Art of Seating: Two Hundred Years of American Design

LSU Museum of Art

This collection includes more than 40 iconic and historic chairs from the mid-1800s to pieces from today’s studio movement. Drawn from the Jacobsen Collection of American Art, they form a stylist journey in furniture, with several showstoppers included. 

Dates: March 1 – June 6

Admission:

• Adults, 13 and older: $5
• Children, 12 and under: Free
• Members: Free
• University student with ID: Free
• Veterans and their families: Free with military ID
• The first Sunday of every month is FREE admission. Every Friday night from 5-8 p.m. is also FREE.

Website: lsumoa.org

Hours:

• Tuesday through Saturday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• Thursday and Friday: 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
• Sunday: 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
• Closed Mondays and major holidays

Address:
100 Lafayette Street, Fifth Floor
Baton Rouge, LA 70801 (map)

Phone: (225) 389-7200

Wandering Spirit: African Wax Textiles

West Baton Rouge Museum

This exhibit highlights the history and significance of wax prints in African culture and society.

Dates: March 25 – April 30

Admission:

• Adults: $4.00 + sales tax
• Seniors (62 and up): $2 + sales tax
• Students: $2 + sales tax
• AAA Members: $2 + sales tax
• Active Military Members: $2 + sales tax
• Residents of West Baton Rouge Parish and members of the West Baton Rouge Historical Association: Free

Website: westbatonrougemuseum.org

Hours:

• Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
• Sunday from 2 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Address:

845 N. Jefferson Avenue
Port Allen, LA 70767 (map)

Phone: (225) 336-2448

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