Speed Art Museum

I love this place! I went on a weekend, when it was pretty popular. Despite this fact the staff was friendly and knowledgeable. Very open minded, and not the least bit pretentious. The kids lab was as much fun for me as it was for my guest. She is an adult with autism, and was treated well by staff. She enjoyed the entire museum!I would return indeed!

As soon as I entered, I felt excited. My mother--ever the critic--was pleasantly surprised too. The museum has a great mix of historical and contemporary art. We saw the Infinity Room by Yayoi Kusama, and the 90-second timed experience really added something special to it. To limit the time you have in a place called the Infinity Room was immersive and thought-provoking in a way I wasn't expecting.We also stumbled upon the animated movie series in the cinema. I had no idea the museum had such a solid cinema program, so that was a cool find.I didn't get a chance to check out the cafe, but I did learn that Sundays offer free admission, which means I'll definitely be back regularly. It was great to see kids enjoying the museum too, especially hearing their excited "ooohs" and "aaahs" as they entered each room. Free admissions on Sunday is a great way to make art accessible for everyone. A value that's important to me and apparently important to the Speed. Love it.The staff were friendly and knowledgeable, and the layout is easy to navigate--everything feels beautifully curated and welcoming.

The Speed continues to be Louisville's top-notch art museum, consistently bringing in rotating exhibits and planning monthly events to appeal to all ages. View their website for details and follow their social networks. Social is my favorite because the team brings in fantastic humor to their posts. Art can be fun!Art Sparks is specifically designed for the younger children. After Hours events are more fun for adults. They also have a theater for movie screenings. It is comfortable and doesn't contain a bad seat. There's a separate entrance if you only have plans for a show. If you want to visit for the gift shop only it does not require paid admission. Parking garage is available. Payment can be made upon leaving and is based on time spent.

Our group visited the museum on a Wednesday to enjoy a prepaid ticketed event of a national Video Fest being held over multiple days. Website was fairly easy to navigate to purchase tickets. Parking garage is very expensive. Construction dust and debris are the first thing encountered as patrons enter the property on foot or via vehicle. Signage is sparse, so be prepared to wing it. We planned our visit around a 1 PM showing of the fundraiser film and arrived at 11 AM to have lunch at the Wiltshire Pantry cafe on site (spoiler alert! IT's Closed!). These plans were made based upon the recorded phone directory message accessed a week prior which listed the cafe's hours. We had even called to confirm the information and left a voicemail for staff to return our call for group visits. No response has yet been received by the time of this review (10 days later).At the Information Desk, which was staffed with 3 people, we were told the Wiltshire Pantry has been closed since at least the end of 2023 and new cafe provider of Marigold will hope to be open next month by September 2024 (supposed to have opened in March 2024). When we expressed that we had accessed the phone directory and website and received misinformation, the staff told us they were aware of the incorrect info and appeared unconcerned. When we told them we had left a voicemail for a callback for our group visit, one of the staff said they had just been discussing this very topic among themselves as they were sitting together at the info desk, but that they were very busy and had not had time to listen to voicemails, but planned to at any moment. Wow -- not impressed. The gift shop appeared to be fully stocked. Prices were steep, but this was expected since it's a source of revenue. (Example: A 500-piece puzzle was $25.)Pro: Gorgeous venue, easy accessibility for any level of mobility inside, light and bright and clean facilities, tons of staff scattered throughout the building readily available to answer questions or provide assistance, and a nice variety of artwork displayed from the collection throughout the property. Movie theater was very comfortable and terrific accommodations. Cons: Construction that seems unending, staff will not answer phone or return voicemails, phone system gives misinformation and has not been updated for a year, parking is expensive in adjacent garage. We might return in the next 6 months to see the current temporary exhibit, but it also depends on if our phone call is ever returned to enable the visit. Not holding my breath based on this encounter. I also decided I won't be purchasing a museum membership based on this visit. Sundays are free to visit the museum for the general exhibits.

For those who don't know the Speed Art Museum is free to everyone on Sundays. Of course the special exhibits will be available for an extra charge. But if you just want to check out the permanent exhibits for free for an hour or two then go ahead. It certainly makes sense especially on a cold winter's day. If you are willing to walk a block and a half you can park for free by Manual High School on Second Street. Yeah, parking at the Speed Museum garage will cost you around $8 for couple of hours.

Some of Louisville's best people are at the helm of this beautiful museum. We've been members for about five years now and we really feel like it's worth it. Curators regularly bring terrific traveling exhibitions, and if we manage to tour the collections every three or four months, we're guaranteed to see something new and captivating. Louisville may lack the population base and the deep pockets that accompany the really big art museums around the country, but they absolutely meet the needs of this community, and without Sackler money.I appreciate that they can showcase a Rodin or Degas, while pulling in a jaw-dropping Mucha show, but at the same time they will put together an installation of local artist Sam Gilliam or an exhibition featuring Amy Sherald's Breonna Taylor painting with installation-specific pieces contributed by local artists. And possibly my favorite thing about the Speed is the cinema, which makes great films - especially contemporary ones - accessible to a community that really was lacking them. There is nothing stuffy about our Speed, and I'm grateful for it.

The speed art museum it's a wonderful place to enjoy and immerse yourself in art and culture. Every time I go there I leave feeling better. I recommend it 100% for special movies premiers or exhibits.

Sunday I went to go see the Yayoi Kusama art installation and loved it. Im excited that Louisville is getting artists like this to lend us their work, and not just for tourism! The exhibition was beautiful, I'm going again before it leaves next year!

Visited this amazing museum on Sunday, 4/16/23. My daughter and I had been talking about wanting to venture here and she saw it was free on Sunday. So she, my grandchildren, and I all went.Upon arrival the staff was very helpful and advised us every Sunday admission is free, not just on this particular Sunday. The caveat is that with the free admission you are excluded from seeing the Special Exhibits on the third floor. Trust me, there is plenty to see on the first and second floors.The first floor has a children's interactive area that is amazing and my grandchildren found it so interesting they did not want to leave.There is one entire exhibit section dedicated to the history of Kentucky and I was blown away by what I saw and learned.A wide variety of exhibits welcomes you to explore their treasures.The museum also has the Wiltshire Pantry offering refreshments on the main floor.It was a great time!

The Speed Art Museum is the oldest art museum in the state. It includes a cinema, a family interactive area, cafe, and a large exhibition space. The collection is outstanding. Anyone can visit the Speed for free on Sundays though 2024 because of a donation from Brown-Forman.We ran out of time today and didn't get to do Art Sparks (the interactive gallery for all ages), but we're looking forward to going back. I appreciate that I'm able to give my children exposure to art of this caliber at no cost. It's a great opportunity. I know the exhibitions change over time, but today they had two Monet's and I was excited about sharing this experience with my family.