The Henry Art Gallery is a contemporary art museum on the west edge of the University of Washington campus at 15th Avenue NE and NE 41st Street. Founded in 1927 as Washington State’s first art museum, the Henry focuses on new ideas, emerging and mid-career artists, and exhibitions that challenge conventional thinking. Admission is free to all visitors (source: UW Dawg Daze).
Visitors find rotating galleries of installation, video, photography, and sculpture, drawn partly from a permanent collection of more than 25,000 objects that includes notable costume and textile holdings. The standout is James Turrell’s Light Reign, a skyspace with an oval opening to the sky that is lit at dusk. The museum’s 1997 expansion by Gwathmey Siegel sits partly below street level beneath a sculpture court. The Henry calls itself “a museum for contemporary art and ideas” (source: Henry Art Gallery).
Visitor Highlights & Practical Info
Listed hours vary by source. One lists Thursday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Friday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (source: Artguide), and schedules can change during university breaks. Confirm the current hours on the official site before you go. Weekday mornings are the quietest time to visit. Expect busier galleries during fall quarter openings and on weekend afternoons. You can take Link light rail to U District Station, or take a bus along 15th Avenue NE. The Burke Museum, Suzzallo Library, and University Way’s casual restaurants are all within a short walk.
