No, the museum is free and open to everyone.

There are many ways! Visit our Learn & Explore, Current Exhibitions, and Upcoming Events pages, ask to receive our Museum News email, like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Become a Friend of the Museum.

Contact us at museum@bates.edu to inquire about tours (type “Tours” in the subject). Guided group tours are available by appointment.

No. Food and beverages are allowed in the atrium, but not in the galleries.

Yes. We encourage families to visit!

Visitors are allowed to take non-flash photographs. On occasion certain exhibitions have photography restrictions, which are identified on wall labels and at the visitors’ service desk. Photography for commercial use or distribution is prohibited.

Professional photography requests
Exhibitions: To request a professional shoot for press or educational purposes, or to request high resolution art and exhibition images, contact museum@bates.edu (type “Exhibition Photography Request” in the subject).

Collections: To request a digital image of a work in permanent collection, contact museum@bates.edu (type “Collections Photography Request” in the subject).

Yes. Please inquire at the Front Desk in person or at 207-786-6158.

Yes, there are accessible parking spots off of the circle in front of the Olin Arts Center/Museum entrance.

In accordance with titles II and III of the ADA, the Museum welcomes service dogs only. Service dogs must be housebroken as well as harnessed, leashed, or tethered to their accompanying individual.

The Museum cannot endorse specific conservators. Excellent information about selecting a conservator is available on the American Institute for Conservation’s website. To learn about what questions to ask regarding the most current conservation methods, click here.

There are many matting and framing businesses in Maine from which to choose. We cannot recommend any specific one but if you wish to search for one, type “Maine Framers” in a web browser. To learn about framing and art care, click here.

The Museum cannot identify, authenticate, or appraise works of art from private collections, or recommend appraisers. The following online resources may be useful:

The Getty Research Institute’s Appraisal Research Guide

The Smithsonian American Art Museum Research Guide

Appraisers Association of America

Art Dealers Association of America

Moving large works of art is best handled by an experienced fine art shipper.

For crating or shipping in Maine, search “Maine Fine Art Shipping” on the web.

For crating or shipping in New England, consult the New England Marketplace.

For national/international services, consult the American Alliance of Museums Marketplace. The Museum does not endorse specific art handling and shipping companies.

Yes. Each year, the Museum collaborates with the Art & Visual Culture department to present the Annual Senior Thesis Exhibition. Click here for a link to a recent thesis exhibition.

Thank you for your interest in the Museum. While we welcome submissions for consideration, we recommend that prior to submitting you consider the Museum’s mission, educational programming, and current and past exhibitions in order to determine whether your submission is a match with our program. Museum exhibitions are closely tied to Bates College’s curriculum and education needs, and are typically planned several years in advance. Most exhibitions are curated by Museum staff or invited guest curators, and being a small museum, we seldom have available slots to entertain unsolicitated submissions. Because of the volume of unsolicitated proposals we receive, the Museum cannot return artists’ materials.

The Museum will not accept actual works of art for consideration.

Thank you for your interest in the Museum. We recommend that you visit the Museum’s website and review the Collection, Exhibition, and Programming pages in order to determine whether your collection is a match with our program. Then contact the director or curator at museum@bates.edu with information about your collection, so they may be informed about your collection prior to contacting you.

The Bates Museum of Art continues to strengthen its collections through select purchases and gifts of works of art. The director and curatorial staff regularly review collections and set priorities for acquisitions. The Museum buys art from galleries, dealers and auction houses, and occasionally from individuals, and rarely makes purchases from unsolicited proposals. If you are considering sending a purchase proposal, we recommend that you first visit the Museum’s website and review the Collection, Exhibition, and Programming pages to familiarize yourself with the Museum. Purchase offers should be addressed to the attention of the director or curator at museum@bates.edu.

The Museum’s staff is small, but curators are happy to answer questions about the collection, donations of works of art, and other topics related to the Museum’s holdings and exhibitions. Please contact us first by email at museum@bates.edu.

The Museum welcomes all offers of gifts of works of art. Potential donors may contact the director or curatorial staff about their intentions to offer a gift. If the potential gift matches collection needs, we may ask the prospective donor to provide information about the work or works being offered, as well as images (digital .jpg images or snapshots are fine). The staff will consider, among other criteria, quality, and whether each work of art is appropriate for the collection. If the gift is accepted, the donor will be asked to fill out a deed of gift, to transfer ownership. For appraisals of charitable donations of works of art, check with your tax preparer or accountant for the proper procedure and paperwork required by the IRS, and refer to the Appraiser question under Art Services. If the work being offered does not fit the Museum’s collecting needs, the gift will be declined.