Smith College Museum of Art

09/06/2026

SCMA Conversations return! We invite you to explore "Beyond the Floating World: Viewing Japanese Prints with Smith Faculty," in conversation with SCMA Staff and Smith College faculty.

Hear how faculty from Art History, Chemistry, East Asian Languages & Culture, and History approached SCMA's Japanese print collection through the lens of their teaching, research, and personal experiences, revealing unexpected connections and fresh perspectives on these remarkable works in this upcoming installation.

This event is part of SCMA Conversations, a series connecting audiences with SCMA's collection. Explore art and spark discovery—no matter where you are. Free and open to all | Registration required: https://scma.smith.edu/exploringjapaneseprints

Sekino Jun-ichiro. Japanese (1914–1988). "Bin-gata," 1975. Woodblock print in eleven colors on moderately thick, slightly textured, cream paper. Gift of Lucio and Joan Noto

Image Description: To the right is a Japanese print of a person sitting in a kimono with a pattern that expands to the background with a red color scheme. To the left is text that reads: SCMA conversations, September 24, 2026, Exploring Together: Japanese Prints Project at SCMA, 12:15–1:15 p.m., Virtual.

09/05/2026

Hey Smithies! Did you know you have an art museum right in your backyard?
Whether you need a study break, a cozy spot to refresh, or a place to connect and hang with others, SCMA is here. Plus as a Smith student, you’re also a SCMA Friend, which gets you access to Friends only programs, shop discounts, and more! (Opt-in at link in bio)

📍 20 Elm Street

⏰ Tues–Sun: 11 a.m.–4 p.m.

🌙 Second Fridays: Open late till 8 p.m.

🎟️ Always FREE for everyone (so bring your family when they visit, too)

Stop by to take in some art, get inspired, and clear your head.

Video description: Video clips of people standing and talking in different locations of the museum welcoming students.

09/04/2026

Color and music are blending together next week for September Second Friday: Music and Color.

🎷 Enjoy live jazz on the museum’s front porch in partnership with the Northampton Jazz Festival. Northampton Jazz Festival

🎵 Get inspired by music and rhythm to create your hands-on artmaking project in the form of a ripped paper collage.

🦆 And don't forget to stop by The Cunningham Center for "Birds of a Feather: The Pop-up" to vote for your favorite bird-themed artworks from the SCMA collection. The community’s top choices will go on view this fall in a final installation in the Cunningham Corridor.

🎬 Plus, there will be a film screening on loop in Graham Hall, "Miss Alma Thomas: A Life in Color" (20 minutes, 2021).

Support provided by Art Bridges and Mass Cultural Council. Second Friday is a part of Arts Night Out Northampton with Downtown Northampton Association.

Image Description: To the left, a person stands wearing headphones, looking at a large painting. To the right, two kids make art on a sparkly table.

09/01/2026

New on view! Have you seen Younes Rahmoun's brass sculpture, "Markaba (Vessel)"? It is now in the lower level galleries alongside related diagrammatic drawings and other artworks. Explore the presence of light and shape through line, three dimensions, and text, in both Arabic and English.

Image 1: Younes Rahmoun. Moroccan (born 1975). "Markaba-Zafir-Chahiq (Vessel-Exhilation-Inhalation," 2016. Ink and graphite on recycled paper.
[Description: Drawing on off-white paper with black ink showing two central geometric forms rendered with a bold line.]

08/29/2026

“[The work] is really dynamic, really unique. I think once you’ve seen some of her work, it becomes instantly recognizable, which is a very hard thing for an artist to achieve, and it’s very experimental,” said Emma Chubb, the show’s organizing curator and the museum’s recently appointed associate director of curatorial affairs. “It feels really alive and vibrant half a century after it was made.”

Artist Alma Thomas was famous for her signature brushstrokes — or, as she called them, “Alma’s stripes” — yet these marks transcend simple lines. At times, they mimic the view of nursery plants arranged in neat rows from above. In other pieces, they resemble terrace tilework, forming shape...

08/27/2026

Listen while you look. Alma Thomas was greatly inspired by music and often listened to mixtapes while she painted. One of Alma Thomas's wishes was for people to view her artwork while listening to the music that inspired it. In SCMA's "Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas from the Smithsonian American Art Museum," there are headphones in the gallery so you can do just this.

Each set of headphones has three stations to tune into.
💿 Channel 1 is a collection of songs that Alma Thomas listened to while painting.
📼 Channel 2 is WOZQ's (Smith College's student–run radio station) playlist inspired by Alma Thomas.
🌿 Not feeling like traditional music? Immerse yourself in natural sounds and field recordings from and around the Smith campus on channel 3.

[Image 1: Two people sit on a bench with headphones on looking at artwork.]

08/25/2026

We are just one month away from the 2026 SCMA Fall Reception! Join us in celebrating "Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas from the Smithsonian American Art Museum," and experience Thomas's radiant use of color and the joyful vision that shaped her singular artistic practice this September 25, 5–7 p.m.

Along with the artwork, enjoy an evening of refreshments, friends, and the galleries as you explore these luminous paintings.

Painting: Alma Thomas, "Elysian Fields," 1973, acrylic on canvas, 30 1/8 x 42 1/4 in. (76.5 x 107.2 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum. Bequest of the artist, 1980.36.8

[Image 1 description: An image with blue and white abstract painting on the top and on the bottom text that reads, "Fall Reception, September 25, 2026, 5–7pm.]

08/18/2026

What could've been a obstacle, led way to a new groundbreaking style. After retirement, Alma Thomas struggled with arthritis, and even had to consider giving up painting. But when Howard University offered to mount a retrospective of her work in 1966, she decided to try something new. With her arthritis in mind, she brought to life her abstract marking-making known as "Alma's stripes" and continued painting.

Experience these mosaic-like stripes in person, on view at SCMA as part of "Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas from the Smithsonian American Art Museum," through January 10, 2027. Plan your trip today.

Alma Thomas, "Celestial Fantasy," 1973. Acrylic on canvas, 60 x 54 in. (152.4 x 137.2 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum. Bequest of the artist, 1980.36.11

[Description: A painting covered with mosaic-like blue stripes over a colorful, pink, yellow, and teal background.]

08/17/2026

Thanks to all those who attended Second Friday this month! We had a great time celebrating Alma Thomas and teachers alike. Special shoutout to Tiphareth Ananda from Campus School of Smith College, for leading a wonderful bookmark-making exercise, The Community Classroom for setting up with their fabulous Traveling Space Trailer, 🪐✨ and Lynne Dole of The Smith College Department of Education and Child Study for all their collaboration.

Support provided by Art Bridges and Mass Cultural Council. Second Friday is a part of Arts Night Out Northampton with Downtown Northampton Association.

[Image 1: A person smiles at the camera at a table of people making art.]

[Image 2: People stand around tables outside full of activities and colorful signs.]

08/14/2026

Today, August 14 Second Friday, from 4–8 p.m., step on board the Traveling Space Trailer, Community Classroom’s mobile learning hub—a whimsical, space-themed pop-up space where kids can explore, create, read, and discover through STEAM activities. 🚀

Create solar system necklaces, glow-in-the-dark constellation art, and grab a temporary tattoo! Plus experience a pop-up social justice reading room and imagine yourself in space!

Photos and video courtesy of The Community Classroom.

Support provided by Art Bridges and Mass Cultural Council. Second Friday is a part of Arts Night Out Northampton with Downtown Northampton Association.