Welcome to the Anderson Collection
Stanford University's free museum of modern and contemporary American art

Open Wed - Sun

11 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Advance reservations not required.
Click here for group visits.

Self-Guided Tours Developed by Stanford Students

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Stanford unveils the Anderson Collection: New museum dedicated to renowned works of American art

…on-black study “Abstract Painting 1966” is hung next to the screamingly bold yellow “Homage to the Square: Diffused, 1969” by Josef Albers. In the same room is Ellsworth Kelly’s “Black Ripe, 1955,” consisting of a large, black amoeba-shaped form that seems trapped inside the confines of the canvas. Among all these non-objective paintings stands a lovely and delicately crafted female torso entitled “…

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‘Formed & Fired: Contemporary American Ceramics’ at the Anderson Collection breaks the mold

…erson Collection at Stanford University. An exhibition of ceramics highlights artists who are reshaping ceramics in concept and craftsmanship. The exhibition – which features 11 works by Kathy Butterly, Kahlil Robert Irving, Simone Leigh and Brie Ruais – was postponed from spring 2020 and will be on view upon the museum’s reopening, hopefully in early 2021. A virtual tour of the show is available online now. “By sharing the work and voices of the…

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Manuel Neri’s Chromatic Chaos

Manuel Neri’s Chromatic Chaos Apparent in Manuel Neri’s works with plaster figures is a kind of dualism: they reference classical forms while also radiating contemporary anxiety and subjectivity. John Seed 2 hours ago Manuel Neri, “Joan Brown Seated, (1959) aluminum with Alborada patina; oil-based pigments with yellow glaze, cast 1963, re-patina applied 2016, 30 1⁄4 x 12 1⁄2 x 27 inches; pedestal: 30 x 19 x 27 inches (all photos…

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Hunk, Moo Anderson give modern art masterpieces to Stanford

…“and I’ve hung onto that tenaciously ever since,” Hunk said. Moo got her nickname right after the couple met for the first time at the Geneva yacht club. “Hunk asked me for a date,” Moo said, “and we went down to the hotel saloon in Geneva, and Hunk introduced me as Murma Ransford, which is what my parents called me. And a guy at the end of the bar said, ‘Moo Moo? What a funny name.’ So we shortene…

On Elite Campuses, an Arts Race

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Hot Art Bling the New Thing on the Peninsula

…gered species,” says Rhyena Halpern, who oversees the city’s public investment in the arts as assistant director of Palo Alto’s Community Services Department. “Because the cost of living is so high, and the cost of doing business is so high.” But the very same economic boom has created more people in a position to invest in art. Pace, Halpern says, could well be the harbinger of things to come. “That they took this risk to come here to see what t…

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Harry W. “Hunk” Anderson dies at 95

…te it in perpetuity, so that it could be used, shared and seen, reflected his philosophy that art can and should inspire all of us. All of us at Stanford will always have the deepest affection for Hunk as a generous, big-hearted man.” To date, the Anderson Collection at Stanford University has been seen by nearly 250,000 visitors. Every work in the museum is viewable online and the collection has grown through gifts from other members of the comm…

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Meet Manuel Neri’s Muses: ‘Assertion of the Figure’ highlights the models behind the sculpture

…e September 27, 2017 Jeffrey Edalatpour A subject study, ‘Joan Brown with Neri Sculpture I,’ one of the Manuel Neri sketches on display at Stanford’s Anderson Collection. Manuel Neri’s muses are equal partners in Assertion of the Figure, an exhibit of the Bay Area artist’s work at Stanford’s Anderson Collection. He’s primarily known as a figurative sculptor, one who represents the female body. While t…

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Apsáalooke artist Wendy Red Star creatively engages with the Stanford community

…ctual authority. In both Gast’s painting and Red Star’s overstuffed caricature figure titled America as a Woman, the floating female appears to be blessing the people below. Inside the Wisch Family Gallery, a wallpaper print of a paint-by-numbers version of American Progress, done by Stanford students and museum staff following Red Star’s remote instructions, covers one of the gallery walls. The paint-by-numbers version is abstracted and sometime…

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The Magic of The Anderson Collection

…cross-fertilization of paintings, sculptures, and colors throughout the museum. It creates a striking patchwork of colors and unexpected juxtapositions. If the Anderson Collection represents a milestone in Stanford history, it also is a gift to humanity. Connoisseurs will be touched by its charm. If you are intimidated by art museums, this one will make you feel at ease. The rooms are living-room size not museum size, giving one a feeling of wha…

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Up Close: One Painting Tours With Artists

A project of the Anderson Collection at Stanford University Hosted by art historian and the associate director of ITALIC at Stanford, Kim Beil, the micro-video series “Up Close: One Painting Tours with Artists” focuses on a single object in the Anderson Collection, sparking dialogue with a guest artist. This project is made possible by a grant from Stanford Arts and the Anderson Collection at Stanford University. Artist Rebekah Goldstein explor…

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The Cantor and Anderson Collection offer free membership to Class of 2020

The Cantor and Anderson Collection offer free membership to Class of 2020…

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Our Visitor Guidelines

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A private art collection becomes a Stanford collection on Sunday, Sept. 21

…the world and invite you to became a part of the journey.” Stanford constructed a building exclusively for the collection within the expanding arts district, and over the summer the collection moved in. The building is adjacent to Cantor Arts Center and the planned McMurtry Building for the Department of Art and Art History (opening in 2015), and across Palm Drive from Bing Concert Hall. Total cost for construction of the building for the A…

Construction on Anderson Collection art museum begins

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Anderson Collection pieces lock in a home at Stanford

…it arrives by heavy Freightliner on a mid-August morning, Anderson and his wife, Mary Margaret (Hunk and Moo, as they are known to just about everyone who has ever met them), come by to see its installation and note its symbolism as the last big artwork to take its place in the Anderson Collection at Stanford University. “Well, what do you think?” Hunk says, while getting his first look at the walls nearly covered in his art. In terms of…

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Palette Cleanser: A new campus museum quietly serves up a visual banquet

…s museum quietly serves up a visual banquet. By Lydia Lee It’s tempting for designers to try to turn art museums into works of art themselves. But what if the client’s directive is just the opposite? A new campus museum in the Bay Area by the New York–based firm Ennead Architects may disappoint those hoping for a bigger architectural statement. However, as designed to house the 121 works of the Anderson Collection, a choice selection of postwar A…

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Fashion statements: Nick Cave’s Soundsuits come to Stanford

…ns. Each item he finds holds a story — the energetic imprint from every previous owner, which he assembles into his Soundsuits. In that way, it can be said that Soundsuits are formed from memories. The Chicago artist’s creations are part sculpture and ornament, armor and instrument and are often worn as costumes and performed in. The energetic vibration of each single, insignificant article is magnified by how Cave chooses to bind the…