Holiday Season at the Philadelphia Museum of Art

The Philadelphia Museum of Art will welcome visitors with a host of festive events during the holiday season, including caroling in the galleries, hands-on art activities, and films as well as seasonal excursions to Mount Pleasant and to the newly restored Cedar Grove. On Friday, December 6, at 10:30 a.m., Timothy Rub, the George D. Widener Director and CEO, will kick off the season with an event featuring the Upper Darby High School Encore Singers, who will present a sneak preview in the Great Stair Hall of the group’s upcoming Holiday Week performance. At 11:00 a.m., the Museum will offer media and visitors (first come, first served) a trolley tour to Cedar Grove, reopening in time for the holidays after sixteen months of refurbishments.

Throughout December, the Museum will present seasonal offerings. Wednesday Nights at the Museum, when admission is pay-what-you-wish from 5:00 to 8:45 p.m., will offer programs ranging from Make Stuff: Holiday Card-Making Station (November 27), and an Ugly Sweater Party (December 4) to holiday film favorites, including Elf (2003), introduced by one of the film’s producer’s, Todd Komarnicki; Love Actually (2003); and A Christmas Story (1983). On Wednesday, December 11, First Person Arts StorySlams will invite visitors to share their personal stories on the theme of re-gifting. On Friday nights, Art After 5 will present a Festival of Lights with the West Philadelphia Orchestra (December 6), Christmas in Mexico (December 13), Matt Wilson’s jazzy Christmas Tree-O (December 20), and the Mistletoe Hop (December 27).

From Thursday, December 26, through Wednesday, January 1, holiday activities are planned daily, including a Winter Family Studio, a Holiday Family Gallery Tour, gallery tours focusing on the Christmas Story in Art, a Holiday Drawing Activity in the Great Stair Hall Balcony, and concerts ranging from the Philadelphia Chorus to Nashirah, the Jewish Chorale of Greater Philadelphia. The week concludes with a New Year’s Day Film Marathon: Back to the Future.

The Museum’s more than two hundred galleries are filled with collections spanning two thousand years of artistic achievement. Among the special exhibitions on view are the acclaimed Léger: Modern Art and the Metropolis, entering its final weeks (closing January 5); Barbara Chase Riboud: The Malcolm X Steles, continuing through January 20; and The Surrealists, closing on March 2, 2014.

The historic homes of Mount Pleasant and Cedar Grove in Fairmount Park will be decorated for the holidays. There are opportunities to experience the houses on selected evenings with wine and colonial-inspired desserts and transportation provided via trolley from the Museum’s West Entrance.

The Museum Store offers gifts inspired by art, wit, and whim, ranging from touchscreen gloves, pocket-size puzzle book stocking stuffers, and notecards showing Santa in the masterpieces of the collection. Tickets to the Léger: Modern Art and the Metropolis exhibition (through January 5, 2014) and the widely praised catalogue also make timely holiday gifts.

One unique item offered by the Museum this holiday season is the gift of membership. Gift recipients enjoy a full year of benefits and privileges, including unlimited free general admission to the collections; free tickets to exhibitions; special discounts on dining, shopping, parking, and educational programs; and access to exhibition previews and special programs. On Monday, December 2, a $10 discount will be offered on gift memberships. For more information, call 215-684-7840.

For a full schedule of holiday activities at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, visit them using one of their various social media contacts:

• Website: www.philamuseum.org/holidays
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philamuseum
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/philamuseum
• Tumblr: http://philamuseum.tumblr.com/
• YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/PhilaArtMuseum
• Instagram: http://instagram.com/philamuseum

Museum Hours:
Mondays: Closed. Tuesday through Sunday: 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Wednesday and Friday: 10:00 a.m.–8:45 p.m. The Museum will be closed Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day and open during normal hours on Monday, December 30, 2013 and Wednesday, January 1, 2014.

About the Museum

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is among the largest museums in the United States, with a collection of more than 227,000 works of art and more than 200 galleries presenting painting, sculpture, works on paper, photography, decorative arts, textiles, and architectural settings from Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the United States. Its facilities include its landmark Main Building on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the Perelman Building, located nearby on Pennsylvania Avenue, the Rodin Museum on the 2200 block of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, and two 18th-century houses in Fairmount Park, Mount Pleasant and Cedar Grove. The Museum offers a wide variety of activities for public audiences, including special exhibitions, programs for children and families, lectures, concerts and films.

For additional information, contact the Marketing and Communications Department of the Philadelphia Museum of Art at (215) 684-7860. The Philadelphia Museum of Art is located on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway at 26th Street. For general information, call (215) 763-8100, or visit the Museum’s website at www.philamuseum.org.