The Museums of Santa Fe, New Mexico Palace of the Governors The historic Palace of the Governors features a collection of more then 17,000 objects tracing the history of New Mexico from Spanish Colonial days to the present. The library and photograph archives are open to researchers. Museum of Fine Arts Housed in a Pueblo Revival structure, the museum (pictured right) is home to a permanent collection of historic and contemporary art from New Mexico and beyond. Institute of American Indian Arts Museum The nation’s only museum dedicated solely to contemporary Native American arts features exhibitions of works by IAIA alumni, students, and faculty, as well as new art forms from Indian Country. Museum of Indian Arts and Culture Experience native Southwestern cultures through ancestrial-to-contemporary ceramics, textiles, jewelry, baskets, and tools. There is also a hands-on discovery center and an anthropological library. Museum of International Folk Art Celebrating its 50th year (in 2004), this museum features imaginative exhibitions of the world’s largest collection of folk art. Lectures, artist-led workshops and daily docent tours are also offered. Museum of Spanish Colonial Art Opened on July 21, 2002, the museum’s art collection includes approximately 3,000 objects dating from the Middle Ages to the New Millennium. Media include santos, textiles, tinwork, straw applique, ironwork, ceramics, books and much more. The collection is housed in a classic adobe structure representing the Spanish Colonial or Pueblo Revival style. Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian New Mexico’s oldest private non-profit museum (pictured right) offers changing exhibits of contemporary and traditional Native American art, including outdoor sculptures. Constructed in 1937 by Mary Cabot Wheelwright (1878 to 1958), the Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian is significant for the role it has played in assembling, preserving and studying the artifacts and recordings of the Navajo religion. Wheelwright, a member of the distinguished Cabot family of Boston, and Hastiin Klah (1867 to 1937), the highly respected Navajo medicine man, collaborated in collecting and preserving important aspects of Navajo religious ceremonies at a time when many of the ceremonies were in danger of being lost. The museum’s exhibits are housed in a sacred eight-sided structure, inspired by a traditional Navajo hooghan. The interior walls have carvings, panels, sandpaintings and statuary that symbolize aspects of Navajo religion. The lower levels are open upon request and used as research facilities. Georgia O’Keeffe Museum The museum contains the largest collection of Georgia O’Keeffe paintings in the world. The facility is totally dedicated to this one woman’s work, whose haunting depictions of the shapes and colors of Northern New Mexico (in particular her home in Abiquiu) made her internationally famous. El Rancho de las Golondrinas The “Ranch of the Swallows” was founded in the early 1700s and was an historic paraje, or overnight stop, on the El Camino Real to Mexico City. The 200-acre living history museum depicts life in Spanish Colonial New Mexico. Features include a mill, a frontier schoolhouse, a morada modeled after the churches of the mysterious Penitente brotherhood, and many other period structures. Events at El Rancho de las Golondrinas include costumed villagers acting out activities from the past in the old and reconstructed buildings on the ranch grounds. Santa Fe Children’s Museum Hands-on activities with scientists for kids take place on Sundays. Workshops with professional artists and outdoor environmental educators are held throughout the rest of the week. New Mexico State Capitol The Capitol’s design was adopted from a symbol on a Zia Pueblo pot. Known as the “Roundhouse,” due to is circular design, it is home to changing exhibits on the fourth floor and permanent displays by New Mexico artists throughout the building (pictured right) and around the grounds. Randall Davey Audubon Center Highlights of this 135-acre private wildlife sanctuary include hiking trails, historic home tours, a nature store, and special programs for all ages. Approximately 130 species of birds can be found within the various ecosystems of the sanctuary. The center is also the National Audubon Society State Office. Bataan Memorial Military Museum The museum, founded by members of the New Mexico National Guard and named in honor of World War II soldiers in the Philippine Islands, features a military library and artifacts and memorabilia from the 16th century to the Gulf War. Bradbury Science Museum Interactive exhibits highlight Los Alamos Laboratory’s current projects and its development of the atom bomb. Home | Food | Lodging | Merchants | Services | Real Estate | Art & Galleries | Entertainment | Recreation Ski Areas | Mind-Body-Spirit | Santa Fe Information | Local Color | Canyon Road | The Turquoise Trail | Santa Fe Plaza The Pueblos | Scenic Beauty | Day Trips | Chili | Special Events | Santa Fe History | Multicultures | Museums High Road to Taos | The Wild West | Churches | Plants & Wildlife | Santa Fe Railyard | Turquoise | Architecture Fiesta | Indian Market | Spanish Market | Zozobra | Features | About Us | Get Listed! | Santa Fe Unlimited Trading Post Photo of the Week | Link of the Month | Testimonials | Santa Fe Webcams | Santa Fe Weather Santa Fe A to Z | Movie Locations | Santa Fe Unlimited Guestbook | Sitemap | Contact Us | Taos Unlimited