Our History

The institution now known as the Art Museum of Greater Lafayette was founded as the Lafayette Art Association on April 14, 1909. After a “general awakening of art interests all over (the) country and state” some Lafayette residents saw a chance to “stimulate and encourage interest in art and to give annual exhibitions, and also to establish and maintain permanent collections of works of art.” Twenty-five citizens, led by Laura Anne Fry, including members of the Art Club came together at the Lafayette High School at Sixth and Columbia, to found the organization. Superior Court Judge, Henry Vinton chaired the meeting and was elected President. Laura Ann Fry was elected Vice President. In less than a month’s time, the Association gained 386 members, each paying $1.00 in annual dues. Judge Vinton and Ms. Fry continued to lead the organization through 1924. Laura Ann Fry was a native of White County and was a practicing potter formerly associated with Rookwood Pottery of Cincinnati until she moved to Lafayette to teach as a Professor in the Industrial Arts Department at Purdue University in 1896. In 1906, she was appointed head of the department; the first woman to be so named.

The Collection

Under the guidance of Judge Henry Vinton and founding member Laura Anne Fry, the Permanent Collection continued to grow. The Association utilized members' homes, local schools, the YMCA, the Tippecanoe County Courthouse, the Fowler Hotel, The Elks Home, and Purdue University for meetings and exhibitions to store works in the new collection. In 1928, David Linn Ross, founder of Ross Gear and Tooling Co., offered the second floor of his building at 628 Main Street rent-free to the Lafayette Art Association and the Tippecanoe Historical Society. This site would provide a much-needed gallery space for the ever-expanding Lafayette Art Association. The Association remained there until 1960. Today, the collection of over 1,400 objects is cared for in a secure and environmentally controlled space within the museum facility at 102 South 10th Street. Several of the works from the collection are always on view in the Weil Gallery, in exhibitions that change regularly. The Art Museum of Greater Lafayette has been accredited by the American Alliance of Museums since 1982 and strictly adheres to the organization's policies and best practices for museums.

Our Building

After thirty-two years in the Ross building, the Association outgrew its space. A new building was built on a piece of land purchased from the grounds of the Moses Fowler House in 1959. The new building was designed by Walter Scholer Sr. and Lloyd Moser of Scholer Corporation and was dedicated in 1960 as the Lafayette Art Center. On March 10, 1980, the North Wing opened, adding an elevator and 1,000 square feet of gallery space on the second floor. This wing was dedicated in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Louis A. Weil, Jr., who made the lead gift to provide space for a classroom and permanent collection galleries. Two years later, after accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums, the Lafayette Art Association was re-incorporated as the Greater Lafayette Museum of Art.

As a memorial to board member Mickey K. Shook, the Community Service Wing was added in 1988 to provide a community gathering space, a gallery, a gift shop, and office space. Robert Whitsel and James Shook Sr. led a capital campaign to secure the funding. In 2015, the wing was remodeled with a grant from North Central Health Services.

The Board of Directors commissioned Dorothy Gillespie to create a large public sculpture titled "Launched Ribbon" which was placed near the Ninth Street entrance in 1984. In 2007, the museum gifted "Launched Ribbon" to the City of Lafayette. After restoration, the sculpture was installed in a pocket park at the intersection of Main and Kossuth Streets in 2010. With funding from a North Central Health Services grant, Louisville artist Dave Caudill was selected from a competition to create a sculptural canopy over the Ninth Street handicapped entrance. "Wabash Waves" was dedicated in October 2007. A significant gift by siblings David Fan, Hung Fan, Vicky Fan Black, and Frances Fan Macdonald funded the remodeling of the studio classroom space on the first floor in honor of their mother. The Manya Fan Art Education Center was dedicated in October 2012.

The Early Years

The Lafayette Art Association began collecting works of art and held its first exhibition in 1909. The early pieces collected by the museum were often purchased directly from the artist and includes: 

  • The Cruise of the Ellida by F. Luis Mora 1911, $600

  • Winter in the Ravine by T.C. Steele 1912, $350

  • Entrance to the Casbah by Henry Ossawa Tanner 1914, $400

  • Snow Covered Banks by Clifton Wheeler 1915, a gift from the children of Ford School

  • The Lariat Maker by Eanger Irving Couse 1916

  • The Red Parasol by Frederick Milton Grant 1917

Over the years the collection has expanded as a result of purchases and donations. The Permanent Collection now boasts more than 1,400 works of art. The Art Museum of Greater Lafayette has been accredited by the American Alliance of Museums since 1982 and strictly adheres to the organization’s policies and best practices for museums.

The bronze sculpture titled “Resting Dancer” by Indiana artist Tuck Langland was purchased, from a 2018 museum exhibition of his work, with a lead gift from the Art League, major gifts from Kristel Kaye and Mona Berg, and many donations by Art Museum members, for installation outside the 10th Street entrance.