About the MFA
The original MFA was founded in 1870 and opened its doors to the
public on July 4, 1876, the nation’s centennial. Built in Copley Square,
the MFA was then home to 5,600 works of art. Over the next several
years, the collection and number of visitors grew exponentially, and in
1909 the Museum moved to its current home on Huntington Avenue.
Today the MFA is one of the most comprehensive art museums in the
world; the collection encompasses nearly 500,000 works of art. We
welcome more than one million visitors each year to experience art
from ancient Egyptian to contemporary, special exhibitions, and
innovative educational programs.
The Museum has undergone significant expansion and change in
recent years; 2010 marked the opening of the Art of the Americas
Wing, with four levels of American art from ancient to modern. In
2011, the west wing of the Museum was transformed into the Linde
Family Wing for Contemporary Art, with new galleries for
contemporary art and social and learning spaces. Improved and new
galleries for the MFA collections are always opening.
To see interior views of our galleries, visit the MFA on Google Arts and
Culture.
Next to the Museum is the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston,
established in 1876. In 2016, the School became part of Tufts
University’s School of Arts and Sciences.
