The entrance to the David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art on the University of Chicago campus in 1991.(Photography by Robin B. Shahani, Copyright 2024, The Chicago Maroon. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission.)
Smart at 50
The Smart Museum of Art, by the numbers.
Year David Smart cofounded Esquire magazine
1933
Dedication date of the David and Alfred Smart Gallery, funded by a posthumous gift from the brothers’ family foundation
10.22.74
Year the Smart Gallery was rechristened the Smart Museum
1990
Works in the Smart’s collection when it opened
2,491
Works in the collection today
17,000+
Paintings in the collection
782
Students served through classes during the 2023–24 academic year
4,035
Students served through Smart programs in 2023–24
1,487
Cost to visit the Smart—in 1974 and today
$0