J. B. Speed Art Museum
Speed Art Museum, March 2016
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| Established | 1927 |
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| Location | 2035 S. 3rd Street Louisville, Kentucky |
| Coordinates | 38°13′4.3″N 85°45′39.3″W / 38.217861°N 85.760917°WCoordinates: 38°13′4.3″N 85°45′39.3″W / 38.217861°N 85.760917°W |
| Type | Art |
| Website | www |
The Speed Art Museum, originally known as the J.B. Speed Memorial Museum, now colloquially referred to as the Speed by locals, is the oldest, largest, and foremost museum of art in Kentucky. It is located in Louisville, Kentucky on Third Street next to the University of Louisville Belknap campus and receives around 180,000 visits annually.
The museum offers visitors a variety of "art experiences" outside of its collection and international exhibitions, including the Speed Concert Series, the Art Sparks Interactive Family Gallery, and the popular late-night event, Art After Dark.
The Speed houses ancient, classical, and modern art from around the world. The focus of the collection is Western art, from antiquity to the present day. Holdings of paintings from the Netherlands, French and Italian works, and contemporary art are particularly strong, with sculpture prominent throughout.
The museum was built in 1927 by Arthur Loomis in the Neo-Classical style. Loomis was already well known in Louisville for landmarks like the Louisville Medical College and Levi Brothers'. The original building was designed as an understated Beaux-Arts limestone facade. Hattie Bishop Speed established the museum in memorial of her husband James Breckenridge Speed, a prominent Louisville businessman, art collector, and philanthropist. Ms. Speed set up the endowment to fund the museum, encouraging the museum to never charge admission.
The museum underwent a $60 million expansion and renovation project from September 2012 to March 2016, designed by architect Kulapat Yantrasast of wHY architecture. During the closure, the museum opened Local Speed, a satellite space in Louisville's East Market District (NuLu) for rotating exhibitions, programs and events. Local Speed is located at 822 East Market Street.
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