Art Institute of Chicago Acquires Norman Rockwell's The Dugout Study

On Monday February 23, City Council unanimously approved $30 million over two years for the Springfield Art Museum’s renovation — a major milestone for our community. Funding comes from the voter-approved Spring Forward SGF sales tax, which dedicates ½ cent to neighborhood, street, and park improvements through the Forward SGF Comprehensive Plan. As part of that vision, this funding will allow the long-planned project to move directly forward, completing museum upgrades that support arts access, education, and cultural tourism. We can't wait to see you back at the Museum in 2028! A heartfelt thank you to the City of Springfield, City Councilmembers and Mayor Schrag for their ongoing support of the Museum's mission and service to the community. City of Springfield, Missouri Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gTKdUD6y

The British Museum has successfully secured the £3.5 million required to acquire a unique Tudor Heart Pendant, ensuring the 24-carat gold treasure remains in the public domain for future generations. Read more: https://lnkd.in/e7p6FrMg Nicholas Cullinan, National Heritage Memorial Fund, Art Fund, The Julia Rausing Trust

We recently spoke with MCN member Grand Marais Art Colony's artistic director Ruth Pszwaro about the art scene on the North Shore, new initiatives by the Art Colony, and the role that art plays for both artist and viewer. For those who don't yet know, the Art Colony is an artist-centered space offering residencies, classes, signature events, and exhibitions located in Grand Marais, Minnesota. As Ruth puts it, “As artistically-minded people are drawn to this place, the Art Colony serves as an anchoring arts organization in the Great Lakes region, able to provide them with space, time and resources for artistic development and exploration.” Read the full Q&A here: https://lnkd.in/g_8faby7 This is part of a series highlighting MCN members across the state, featuring a vast array of nonprofit focus areas, and celebrating the myriad ways nonprofits enrich lives.

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has acquired an original copy of Captain America Comics No 1, one of the most culturally significant comic books in American history. Published in December 1940, nearly a year before America entered World War II, the issue was donated by Riot Games Co-Founder Brandon Beck. “This comic book holds enormous cultural and historical importance,” said Zachary Levine, director of the Museum’s Curatorial Affairs Division. “At a time when many Americans, while disapproving of the Nazi regime, were reluctant to fight another war in Europe, Jack Kirby, an American Jew, used a symbol of America to raise awareness of the threat the Nazi regime posed to Europe and the world. We are grateful to Mr. Beck for making this important artifact part of the Museum’s collection.” https://lnkd.in/esQ_EYDN

Springfield City Council passed a pair of resolutions to dedicate $40.8 million to the Springfield Art Museum and to parks, trails and corridor improvements during its meeting last night. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eVHcCUnc

Loved this piece. It’s fascinating how many design references we absorb growing up. It really struck me how it’s easy to forget how much everyday design shapes our collective visual language. These cultural cues are often what makes communication feel instantly familiar and accessible.

An important new survey of museum directors from our friends at Ithaka S+R (with American Alliance of Museums and ASSOCIATION OF ART MUSEUM DIRECTORS ) reminds us that the key challenge facing American museums may not be the one we want to talk about most: it’s REVENUE. By a wide margin, museum directors cited a “lack of financial resources” as their #1 constraint to fulfilling their mission. 70% of them see contributed revenue as the most likely source of the increased dollars they need to fund their operations and support their missions, and a majority identify a greater need of fundraising skills (across their colleagues and for themselves) to generate this growth in revenue. I don’t know an enterprise that can increase revenue without investing in it. And what this survey doesn’t reveal is whether museums (and museum boards) will approve an increased investment in the fundraising and revenue they need to survive. What do you think? At a moment of fiscal crisis and radical transitions (generational, philanthropic, political), are museums willing to invest in the revenue they need? Read the full survey report here: https://lnkd.in/gmmUQ2yG

The clarity this report brings to the situation as our field's leaders see things is stunning and, from where I sit, entirely authentic to how I responded and what we are often talking about. I am curious to see if there is another way of seeing things from the data as we manage our institutions through this moment in American civic life.

Today, NEMA members and staff will be meeting with congressional leaders and their staff in Washington, DC, to advocate for museums as part of Museums Advocacy Day 2026. Together as a field, we’ve defeated several threats to eliminate federal agencies supporting museums and helped secure billions of dollars in financial relief that enabled many museums to survive and saved thousands of museum jobs. As museums across the country continue to recover and serve their communities in powerful ways, we must keep making our case to Congress. As a constituent, you are in the best position to create lasting change. It’s up to each of us to speak up and make the case for museums and tell the story of why museums are essential in our communities. Here are some resources you can use to advocate for museums: https://ow.ly/sS6g50Yl3iJ

I am very happy to share this new partnership between Books Between Kids and Children's Museum Houston. As one of the founders of Books Between Kids, it’s especially meaningful to see opportunities like this take shape in our community. The Children’s Museum is now hosting a BBK book collection bin in their Parent Resource Library. If you’re visiting the museum, consider bringing a new or gently used children’s book—and help us spread the word so more kids across Houston can build a home library of their own.