The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum

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

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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.

Funders

Generous support for Education and Public Programs is provided by Bank of America; Connecticut Humanities; Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation; The Cowles Charitable Trust; David T. Langrock Foundation; Department of Economic and Community Development, Office of the Arts; Fairfield County Bank; Gage Fund; Goldstone Family Foundation; The Leir Foundation; Milton and Sally Avery Arts Foundation; Pamela F. and Robert J. Morganti Charitable Foundation; Ridgefield Rotary Club; Ridgefield Thrift Shop; The Ruth Krauss Foundation; and Wadsworth Russell Lewis Trust Fund.

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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.

The Studio

The Studio is a dedicated space for learning and making for visitors of all ages to explore ideas, questions, and materials that relate to our current exhibitions.

Children and Family Programs

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

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 Aldrich Teen Fellows and Internships.

School Programs

The Aldrich partners with preschools, elementary, middle, and high schools, universities, community groups, and home-schooled individuals to collaborate on guided tours, professional development workshops, and additional programs.

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 Tours

We offer guided tours of current exhibitions by an Aldrich Educator for groups of five or more.

Camp Aldrich

Camp Aldrich runs each summer for three week-long, full-day sessions led by Museum Educators and practicing artists. Campers explore the Museum’s three-acre campus and incorporate ideas from current exhibitions and relevant themes into their art, culminating in a celebratory exhibition in The Studio at the end of each session.

Selected Upcoming Events

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July 9, 2024 | Public Programs

“Getting” Contemporary Art: Layo Bright, Elizabeth Englander, and Loie Hollowell

Join us for “Getting” Contemporary Art led by Kristen Erickson, art history teacher and Director of the Luchsinger Gallery at Greenwich Academy. Through this three-session course, participants will engage deeply with The Aldrich’s spring exhibitions while having access to our galleries and the Museum’s Studio learning space in private evening sessions. Designed to provoke open and dynamic dialogue, these small classes will help participants learn to analyze, interpret, and discuss the contemporary artwork on view.

July 15 at 9:30 am to July 19, 2024 at 4:00 pm | Camp Aldrich

Camp Aldrich: Week 1 (Grades 1 to 3) - AT CAPACITY

Join us at The Aldrich for a full-day, week-long arts experience with Museum Educators and a practicing teaching artist. Campers explore the Museum’s three-acre campus, learn in the galleries, and incorporate the world around them into their art.

July 17, 2024 at 1:00 pm | Group Tours

Seniors-Only Tour

Join us for this in-person gallery tour of highlighted works from our current exhibitions, guided by Education and Access Specialist Holly Lapine, reserved specifically for senior adults ages 60 and above!

July 18, 2024 at 6:00 pm | Artist Program, Public Programs

Artist Talk: Elizabeth Englander and Eduardo Andres Alfonso

Please join artist Elizabeth Englander and Associate Curator Eduardo Andres Alfonso for a talk on the work and ideas behind Elizabeth Englander: Eminem Buddhism, Volume 3, the artist’s first museum exhibition. Participants can attend the event either in-person at the Museum or virtually over Zoom.

July 20, 2024 at 10:30 am | Third Saturdays, Free Admission, Children and Family Programs

Story Time for Kids: Ada and the Galaxies by Anna Lightman and Olga Pastuchiv - AT CAPACITY

Bring your budding artists to The Aldrich for Story Time, in collaboration with the Ridgefield Library! Together, we will explore the work of artist Esther Ruiz, who uses everything from seashells to stars in the sky to influence her sculptures. Then, we will read Ada and the Galaxies by Anna Lightman and Olga Pastuchiv and illustrated by Susanna Chapman. Finally we will move to The Studio to create our own ocean and galaxy scenes using real shells and rocks!

July 20, 2024 at 1:00 pm | Third Saturdays, Free Admission, Group Tours

All Ages Discovery Tour

Have you ever looked at contemporary art and wished you knew what it meant? Have you ever entered a museum not knowing where to start? If you answered yes, this free, interactive, and judgment-free tour of our current exhibitions guided by a Museum Educator is perfect for you!

July 22 at 9:30 am to July 26, 2024 at 4:00 pm | Camp Aldrich

Camp Aldrich: Week 2 (Grades 1 to 3) - AT CAPACITY

Join us at The Aldrich for a full-day, week-long arts experience with Museum Educators and a practicing teaching artist. Campers explore the Museum’s three-acre campus, learn in the galleries, and incorporate the world around them into their art.

July 29 at 9:30 am to August 2, 2024 at 4:00 pm | Camp Aldrich

Camp Aldrich: Week 3 (Grades 4 to 6)

Join us at The Aldrich for a full-day, week-long arts experience with Museum Educators and a practicing teaching artist. Campers explore the Museum’s three-acre campus, learn in the galleries, and incorporate the world around them into their art.

August 17, 2024 at 10:30 am | Third Saturdays, Free Admission, Children and Family Programs

Story Time for Kids: Olu and Greta by Diana Ejaita

Bring your budding artists to The Aldrich for Story Time! Together, we will explore the work of artist Layo Bright, who makes sculptures of glass, oftentimes inspired by her family from Nigeria. Then, we will read Olu and Greta, written and illustrated by Diana Ejaita. Finally, we will move to The Studio to create our own paper cutouts inspired by the book’s fabulous illustrations!

August 17, 2024 at 1:00 pm | Third Saturdays, Free Admission, Group Tours

All Ages Discovery Tour

Have you ever looked at contemporary art and wished you knew what it meant? Have you ever entered a museum not knowing where to start? If you answered yes, this free, interactive, and judgment-free tour of our current exhibitions guided by a Museum Educator is perfect for you!

August 21, 2024 at 1:00 pm | Group Tours

Seniors-Only Tour

Join us for this in-person gallery tour of highlighted works from our current exhibitions, guided by Education and Access Specialist Holly Lapine, reserved specifically for senior adults ages 60 and above!

September 25, 2024 at 1:00 pm | Group Tours

Contemporary Connections

Join us and the Alzheimer’s Association, Connecticut Chapter at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum as we explore our featured contemporary artists while offering the opportunity to connect with others who are also living in the beginning stage of dementia and their care partners.

December 4, 2024 at 1:00 pm | Group Tours

Contemporary Connections

Join us and the Alzheimer’s Association, Connecticut Chapter at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum as we explore our featured contemporary artists while offering the opportunity to connect with others who are also living in the beginning stage of dementia and their care partners.