Henry Art Gallery

The Henry Art Gallery, or simply "the Henry," is a contemporary art museum located on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle. The institution was founded in 1927 thanks to a generous gift from local businessman Horace C. Henry, who not only paid for the construction of the building but also contributed his private collection of 178 artworks. This collection, which he had assembled since the 1890s with his late wife, Susan, formed the foundation of the museum, making it the first art museum in the state of Washington. Designed by the architects Bebb and Gould, the building is considered architecturally significant and was expanded in 1997 with an addition that includes an auditorium.

The gallery's exhibition program focuses primarily on contemporary art and the history of photography. The ever-growing collection now includes more than 28,000 objects from around the world, among them photographs, prints, drawings, paintings, ceramics, costumes, and textiles. Particular attention is given to the multidisciplinary presentation of contemporary work, which includes installations, videos, and sculptures as well as paintings and works on paper. Because of its location on the West Coast of the United States, the holdings also reflect the influence of Japanese aesthetics, visible in a collection of color woodblock prints, textile designs, and folk pottery.

The photography collection is an outstanding highlight, spanning the earliest days of the medium in the 1840s to the present. These holdings were expanded significantly through gifts from the Monsen family and through the 2017 acquisition of the entire photography collection of the Washington Art Consortium. The prints collection is also of great importance, documenting the art history of printmaking from the 16th century to Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints. At the Henry Art Gallery, you'll find a diverse mix of historical depth and current artistic practice, honoring both established names and emerging talents from the Pacific Northwest and beyond.