The Speed Art Museum was established in 1927 and is Kentucky's oldest museum. It is situated next to the University of Louisville's Belknap Campus and receives more than 180,000 visitors every year. Its collections, the largest in the state, feature over 12,000 items ranging from Egyptian art to contemporary works. The museum has collections of 17th Dutch and Flemish paintings, Baroque tapestries, and 18th century French art. There are many pieces of contemporary American artists and African-American and Native American works. The museum also displays pieces, featuring different media, by Kentucky artists.
The Museum was formerly known as the J.B. Art Museum in memorial of James Breckinridge Speed, a local businessman and philanthropist. It was founded by his wife Hattie Bishop Speed in 1925. The Museum building, in the Greek Revival style, was designed by Louisville architect Arthur Loomis and opened to the public in 1927. By the 1950s major collections of North American Indian artifacts, 15th and 16th century Decorative Arts, and the 'English Renaissance Room' were added. One of the benefactor's paid for an addition to the museum to house the new collections. A number of later additions have been made to the museum to house its growing collections.
In 1977 the Speed Art Museum celebrated its 50th anniversary with the purchase of Rembrandt's Portrait of a Woman, which remains one of the museum's most prestigious acquisitions. Due to recent generous bequests the Museum has been able to acquire works by Cezanne, Chagall, Picasso, Klee and Matisse. The contemporary collection includes Henry Moore, Lorna Simpson and Carter Potter.
