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Harvard Art Museums
This article is over five years old and some of this information might be out of date. Please check with the museum about admission and hours before visiting.
It’s great to experience art, and Boston has some of the best art museums and cultural institutions in the country. But admission isn’t cheap, so whether you’re an art addict, looking for things to do or trying to entertain visiting friends and family, a visit to a museum or two can get costly. Luckily most art museums offer free admission on certain days, so we’ve put together a list of all the best times and days you can get free admission.
180 Main St, Andover, MA | Hours: Tuesday – Saturday: 10 am – 5 pm; Sunday: 1 pm – 5 pm
The Addison Gallery’s collection of American art is one of the most comprehensive in the world, including more than 17,000 objects spanning the 18th century to the present. Admission to the Addison Gallery is always free and open to the public.
What to see:
The Body: Concealing and Revealing, September 1, 2018 – March 31, 2019
Contemplating the View: American Landscape Photographs, September 8, 2018 – March 9, 2019
106 Central Street, Wellesley, MA | Hours: Tuesday – Sunday: 11 am – 5 pm
One of the oldest and most acclaimed academic fine art museums in the United States, The Davis Museum is characterized by collections that span global history from Ancient times to yesterday. Admission to the Davis Museum is always free and open to the public.
What to see:
Jacob Lawrence: The Legend of John Brown, September 21, 2018 – December 16, 2018
Christiane Baumgartner: Another Country, September 21, 2018 – December 16, 2018
1154 Boylston St, Boston, MA | Hours: Monday – Saturday: 10 am – 4 pm
Massachusetts Historical Society’s extraordinary collections tell the story of America through millions of rare and unique documents, artifacts, and irreplaceable national treasures. Admission to the Massachusetts Historical Society is always free and open to the public.
What to see:
2101 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA | Hours: Monday – Wednesday: 10 am – 5 pm; Thursday: 10 am – 8 pm; Friday: 10 am – 5 pm; Saturday – Sunday: 12 pm – 5pm
The McMullen Museum of Art has mounted more than sixty large-scale loan exhibitions and its permanent collection features Renaissance and Baroque paintings and tapestries, nineteenth-century American works of art, prints and photographs. Admission to the McMullen Museum is always free and open to the public.
What to see:
Carrie Mae Weems: Strategies of Engagement, September 10 – December 13
20 Ames St, Cambridge, MA | Hours: Tuesday – Wednesday: 12 pm – 6 pm; Thursday: 12 pm – 8 pm; Friday – Sunday: 12 pm – 6 pm
As the contemporary art museum at MIT, the List Center presents a dynamic program of six to nine special exhibitions in its galleries annually. Admission to the MIT List Visual Arts Center is always free and open to the public.
What to see:
Introducing Tony Conrad: A Retrospective, October 18 – January 16
700 Boylston St, Boston, MA | Hours: Monday – Thursday: 10 am – 7 pm; Friday – Saturday: 10 am – 5 pm; Sunday: 1 pm – 5 pm
The Norman Leventhal Map Center inspires curiosity with its exhibitions featuring maps and other cartographic materials to illuminate history, geography, world cultures, science, and contemporary issues. Admission to the Norman Leventhal Map & Education Center is always free and open to the public.
What to see:
Breathing Room: Mapping Boston’s Green Spaces, March 24, 2018 – September 30, 2018
141 Cambridge St, Boston, MA | Hours: Wednesday: 11 am – 7:30 pm; Thursday – Sunday: 11 am – 4:30 pm
Take a tour of Otis House to learn about the family’s life in the Federal era and the later history of the house, when it served as a clinic and a middle-class boarding house. Tours are available every half hour. Admission to the Otis House Museum is free for Boston residents.
415 South St, Waltham, MA | Hours: Wednesday – Sunday: 11 am – 5 pm
With its international collections and changing exhibitions, the Rose Museum at Brandeis University is dedicated to 20th and 21st-century art. Admission to the Rose Museum is always free and open to the public.
Now on View:
Tuesday Smillie: To build another world, September 8, 2018 – December 2, 2018
Passage, September 8, 2018 – December 2, 2018
455 Oak St, Brockton, MA | Hours: Tuesday – Wednesday: 10 am – 5 pm; Thursday: 10 am – 9 pm; Friday – Sunday: 10 am – 5 pm
Fuller Craft Museum offers expansive opportunities to discover the world of contemporary craft by exploring the leading edge of craft through various exhibitions and programming. Admission to the Fuller Craft Museum is free every Thursday evening after 5 pm, and always free for Brockton residents.
What to see:
Uneasy Beauty: Discomfort in Contemporary Adornment, October 6, 2018 – April 21, 2019
25 Harbor Shore Drive, Boston, MA | Hours: Tuesday – Wednesday: 10 am – 5 pm; Thursday – Friday: 10 am – 9 pm; Saturday – Sunday: 10 am – 5 pm
The Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston presents outstanding contemporary art in all media, including visual art exhibitions, music, film, video, and performance. Admission to the ICA/Boston is free Thursday evenings after 5 pm.
What to see:
We Wanted a Revolution: Radical Black Women, 1965-85, June 27, 2018 – September 30, 2018
Arthur Jafa: Love is the Message, The Message is Death, June 27, 2018 – September 30, 2018
Jason Moran, September 19, 2018 – January 21, 2019
465 Huntington Ave, Boston, MA | Hours: Monday – Tuesday: 10 am – 5 pm; Wednesday – Friday: 10 am – 10 pm; Saturday – Sunday: 10 am – 5pm
The Museum of Fine Arts is one of the most comprehensive art museums in the world; the collection encompasses nearly 450,000 works of art. Admission to the MFA is free every Wednesday evening after 5 pm.
What to see:
Lorraine O’Grady: Family Gained, August 11, 2018 – December 2, 2018
French Pastels: Treasures from the Vault, June 30, 2018 – January 6, 2019
Claes Oldenburg: Shelf Life, August 11, 2018 – December 2, 2018
32 Quincy St, Cambridge, MA | Hours: Monday – Sunday: 10 am – 5 pm
Discover the rich collections of the Harvard Art Museums. Comprised of three different museums, Harvard Art Museums features Western art, Asian, ancient, and Islamic and later Indian art. Admission to Harvard Art Museums is free to Massachusetts residents every Saturday from 10 am – 12 pm.
What to see:
55 Salisbury Street, Worcester MA | Hours: Wednesday – Sunday: 10 am – 4 pm; Third Thursday: 10 am – 8 pm
View paintings by Mary Cassatt, Paul Gauguin, Claude Monet, and John Singer-Sargent, and admire floor mosaics from the ancient city of Antioch, which is just a small selection of the Worcester Art Museum’s expansive collection. Admission to the Worcester Art Museum is free the first Sunday of every month.
What to see:
Lee Mingwei: Stone Journey, September 26, 2018 – August 4, 2019
The Boston Public Library (and most surrounding metro town libraries) offers a chance to visit some of the best local museums and attractions for free. Visit your nearest branch library and get a museum pass valid on select days with your library card. The Museum Pass offers visitors free admission for a family of four to more than a dozen locations including the Boston Children’s Museum, the Boston Museum of Science, and the New England Aquarium (September – June only), just to name a few. Know that passes get reserved early, so don’t wait until the last minute to reserve one.
Chad Sirois is the Senior Marketing and Engagement Manager at ArtsBoston. He is an art and museum addict and can frequently found taking a selfie in a gallery near you. 
@chadsirois 
@chadmsirois