The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum

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Important Update

Timed-entry reservations encouraged. Click here to book.

A group of students in the Museum's Sculpture Garden by a green lawn chair.

Learn

As an artist-centered institution, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum is guided by the belief that artists are innovative thinkers, who offer unique perspectives on our world. Learning at The Aldrich engages visitors of all ages with artworks and ideas from these artists, fostering a public space for critical discourse.

Our programs take place in person at the Museum when possible but currently most stream remotely through our website during the limitations of the COVID-19 pandemic.

These include:

  • Public Programs—talks, tours, performances, workshops, community events, and more that invite new interpretations of the art on view, exchanging perspectives of our complex society and world
  • Family Programs—intergenerational virtual tours, at-home activities, and birthday parties give children and families new ways to learn together through contemporary art
  • Teen Programs—individual internships, group fellowships, and other opportunities to access the world of contemporary art by working directly with artists and Museum staff
  • Educational Programs—virtual tours and learning opportunities that provide direct access to exhibitions through unique and unexpected experiences for schools, universities, clubs, homeschool groups, cultural institutions, learning pods, and more by bridging art with multidisciplinary subjects to meet various learning goals

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Two dancers in colorful dresses dancing in the gallery

Public Programs

Participate in a broad range of programs designed to deepen understanding and engagement with the works of art on view, focused on interactive experiences around contemporary culture.

ILLSA Ballot 2020

The Studio

The Studio is a dedicated space for learning and making for visitors of all ages to explore ideas, questions, and develop meaning around contemporary art and culture. The Studio is currently closed for art-making and public programs due to COVID-19. The space has been transformed into a temporary video screening room.

Young student creates a work of art in The Aldrich's Studio

Children and Family Programs

The Aldrich offers a variety of virtual engagement opportunities for families, inviting peer-to-peer learning and intergenerational exchange.

A group of Aldrich Teen Fellows pose with artist Zoë Sheehan Saldaña

Teen Programs

We are invested in the artists, leaders, and thinkers of tomorrow by providing opportunities for teens to engage with contemporary art and museum careers through our Aldrich Teen Fellows, Internships, and annual Portfolio Day.

Four students look at Sara Cwynar's work

Educational Programs

The Aldrich partners with preschools, elementary, middle, and high schools, universities, community groups, and home-schooled individuals to collaborate on virtual programs and offer digital resources.

Young visitors engage with a work of art on view

Accessibility Programs
The Aldrich supports access to our exhibitions for individuals with a range of abilities through multiple partnerships with regional organizations, reciprocal Museum memberships, scholarship opportunities, and free admission for SNAP/EBT card holders and veterans.
Group of people standing around a large scale sculpture of a white tailed deer in the Sculpture Garden.

Group Tours

On-site group tours are currently suspended in order to promote social distancing and a safe experience within the Museum. Learn more about our reopening guidelines on our Visit page including the curator-led audio tours to enhance your visit.

Selected Upcoming Events

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Portraits of Karla Knight and Roz Chast
December 7, 2021 at 7:00 pm | Public Programs

Artist Conversation: Karla Knight and Roz Chast

Please join artist Karla Knight and cartoonist Roz Chast for a live conversation and Q&A in conjunction with Karla Knight: Navigator, the artist’s first solo museum exhibition.

The bust of a person looking back towards a moon against a dark blue background.
December 14, 2021 at 4:00 pm | Public Programs

Virtual Poetry: It’s in the Cards!

Using Adrienne Elise Tarver’s current exhibition The Sun, the Moon, and the Truth as a springboard, we’ll explore the centuries-old symbolism of Tarot then write poems that reflect some of the themes found in the deck’s Major Arcana cards.

Headshot of Joiri Minaya on the left and headshot of Lucia Hierro on the right.
December 14, 2021 at 6:00 pm | Public Programs

Virtual Artist Conversation: Lucia Hierro and Joiri Minaya

Join artists Lucia Hierro and Joiri Minaya in conversation as they discuss intersections between their work and Hierro’s solo exhibition Marginal Costs, on view through January 2, 2022.

Interstellar Cinderella Book Cover with person with pink hair and mouse with planets.
December 18, 2021 at 10:30 am | Children and Family Programs

Story Time for Little Ones: Interstellar Cinderella

Explore Karla Knight: Navigator in the Museum's galleries with a fun, family-friendly reading of Interstellar Cinderella by Deborah Underwood, alongside Ridgefield Children’s Librarian Christie Barnett.

Vinyl installation of a memorial on a green wall
December 18, 2021 at 1:00 pm | Children and Family Programs, Group Tours

Family Tour: Lucia Hierro and Hugo McCloud

Bring your whole family to enjoy the collaged paintings, soft sculptures, iron gates, and large-scale installations of Hugo McCloud: from where i stand and Lucia Hierro: Marginal Costs before the exhibitions close, through this gallery tour guided by our Aldrich Educators!

A group of Black people outside of shop with segregated water fountains with a young girl using the water fountain marked "Colored Only"
February 6, 2022 at 2:00 pm | Public Programs

In-Person ARTalk - Screening of Film, "A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks" and a Talkback with Richard Klein and Panelists

Join us in-person at the Ridgefield Library for a screening of the film A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks with a talkback immediately afterward with moderator Richard Klein, Exhibitions Director at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, about the many ways renowned photographer Gordon Parks (1912-2006) documented his narrative as a Black American in the 20thcentury and beyond.

Abstract lavender shape with colored dots linked by colored bars peppering the surface.
March 31, 2022 at 7:00 pm | Public Programs

Virtual ARTalk - 52 Artists: A Feminist Milestone with Amy Smith-Stewart and Alexandra Schwartz

This ARTalk will focus on an exciting upcoming exhibition at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, 52 Artists: A Feminist Milestone. This exhibition celebrates the fifty-first anniversary of the historic exhibition Twenty-Six Contemporary Women Artists, curated by acclaimed art critic Lucy R. Lippard which was presented at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in 1971.