Tampa Museum of Art

120 W Gasparilla Plaza, Tampa, FL 33602, USA

Address:	120 W Gasparilla Plaza, Tampa, FL 33602, USA
Phone:	+1 813-274-8130
Site:	tampamuseum.org
Rating:	3.9
Working:	11AM–7PM 11AM–7PM 11AM–7PM 11AM–7PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–5PM 11AM–5PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 8

Tricia McAllister

I visited the museum with a school group today and it was wonderful. They had arranged for us to have guides give us a tour which was wonderful! The guides were so full of knowledge about everything they were showing us! I noticed that some of the other reviews were complaining about size of the museum. It isnt a huge museum and there arent a lot of different exhibits but given the low price I think this is more than fair for what you pay! The exhibits had tons of different pieces of art to view and a lot of history to see! I loved visiting and will gladly plan another visit when the exhibits change! The two exhibits that were there on my visit today were: RENOIR TO CHAGALL: PARIS AND THE ALLURE OF COLOR POSEIDON AND THE SEA: MYTH, CULT AND DAILY LIFE Although both where great I took a special liking to the Renoir to Chagall exhibit but I am not the least bit surprised by this! I am in love with paintings and found it fascinating to learn more about this the art & artist of this time as well as to see the beautiful work displayed!

A Private User

I agree with every aspect of Patricks post dated July 28, 2010. It couldnt be more accurate. I wish I would have read these reviews before I brought my family to visit this art museum. After finding the museum (we were lucky to find it at all due to the lack of signage), we found the art to be sparce at best, and the employees were unfriendly and hounded us throughout our visit (which- by the way- lasted less than 15 minutes even after taking time to view and appreciate each art piece). I have visited many museums across the country, as I seek to expose my "tween" children to the arts, but I have to be honest- our visit to this museum demonstrated no more to them than how to foolishly spend money. In fact, our visit was so distasteful, it actually made me research the history of this museum with my family for a learning experience. All I have to say is this: Shame on you, Tampa, for holding this out to be a fine art museum and for wasting your tax payer dollars. I want a refund.

linda ramsdell

My husband is going to college and had to do a paper for his class. He decided that we would go to the Tampa Museum of Art. Here is our experience of going there. When we walked in we noticed how bare the museum looked. We found the front desk and the employee was not friendly at all and he was not very interested in answering my husbands questions as where we could find the exibits . He just told us that they were all up stairs. We were surprised to see how small the exibits were . There were only three rooms to look at. Hardly any art work on the walls. Even the guards were not friendly. All of the employees there were not friendly including the girls in the gift shop ans snack bar. They looked bored and like they didnt want to be there. Over all, We were very disappointed with our experience there. I would not recommend this museum to any one. A waste of time and money. We have been to quite a few museums over the years. and this was by far the worst one that I have ever been to.

Kalen Hammann

The museum is, as others have said, both gorgeous - striking architecture - and tiny. We went to it despite the bad reviews, because they were showing a traveling exhibit of many many photos and some films by photojournalist Henri Cartier-Bresson. The exhibition was fascinating, and the museum staff friendly and helpful (the woman at the admissions desk sought several ways she might be able to give us a discount on our admissions - over age 65, AAA membership, etc.). Apparently the Tampa Museum of Art is "the only U.S.venue for this exhibition of Cartier-Bressons work," so we were delighted to be in the area and have this chance to see it. Other than that, the museum doesnt have room to show much. So its a mixed bag - definitely worth checking to see what special exhibitions are running when you are thinking of visiting the museum, probably not your best bet otherwise.

Janet Brown

From the outside this looks like a huge museum with lots of galleries. You would expect to spend hours here, but surprise , there is only one gallery space upstairs and it isnt that big. This cost $30.00 for two people and took us about 15 minutes to see. I was so surprised that I asked the person at the desk where the other galleries were. Before we went through the gallery, we had lunch in the museum cafe. $60.00 for a glass of wine 1/4 way full, a feta and tomatoe tart that was a thin piece of filo with just a sprinkle of feta and one cherry tomatoe sliced up( really not a tart at all) some greens sprinkled on the plate, a small bowl of mediocre hummus and some sort of pita which I had never seen before that was rock hard and tasted awful, and a mediocre ham sandwich....a few cups of water....$60.00 I think you can get the drift of this museum.

Ric Rini

The museum is small by larger city standards but very well laid out and has a unique architectural personality. Its clean, well lit with large expanse areas that easily guide you through each art exhibit. It will really depend on what exhibit will be showcased which of course appeals to individual taste however I do not think you will be disappointed in the museum layout or design. Another treat to see is the evening lights on the museum and how they flow through color changes cast on the all sides of the structure. Very relaxing to sit in Curtis Hixon Park and observe at no cost. The museum has a small cafe serving drinks sandwiches and gelato it overlooks the banks of the Hillsborough River and can be visited by all visitors through an admission-free entrance. The café has indoor and outdoor tables/seating overlooking the river.

Samantha Jane

Attended the Museum with my friend yesterday to complete a school assignment. When signing in at the welcome desk, we werent very "welcomed". The man behind the counter named Tom was very blunt and open about his distaste with all of the students that were coming through, he made that blatantly aware to us. When asked where the restrooms were he rolled his eyes at us and said he hated repeating himself over and over again and when asked if we could have a guided tour he got very agitated and told us that we could not because they did not have the staff and that he didnt want to answer anymore interview questions because as he stated before, he hates repeating himself. That along with the underwhelming selection and layout of art I would not recommend anyone to consider this as an activity when exploring Tampa, Florida.

Jason Freedman

Contrary to what currently appears to be a vocal minority of poor feedback -- Im not sure what all the negative reviews are based on. I visited the Tampa Museum of Art in August 2013. The two main exhibits -- Michael Eastmans large format photography of Havana and Modern/Contemporary Mexican artists -- absorbed my attention for the entire afternoon. Eastmans photos are amazingly enticing based on their scale, saturation, and subject. (I bought the coffee table book on my way out!) I found the history and variety of the Mexican art presented captivating and educational. Plus, if Im remembering correctly, there was a small black and white photography exhibit tucked away in another part of the museum. Bottom line: for me, it was well worth the price of admission in addition to the hour-plus drive.