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Hours of operation Closed but virtual today located in Durham, NC

Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University

I’m very excited to have this opportunity to lead the Nasher Museum into the future. Our foundation is quite strong, thanks to the bold vision of our previous directors, Kim Rorschach and Sarah Schroth, and our talented and dedicated museum staff. It is wonderful to be part of this innovative university that supports new ideas and scholarship towards the goals of greater diversity and inclusion. I welcome the challenge to take the Nasher Museum through this moment and to ascend to even greater heights. Together we will find new ways to enliven and inspire community through art.

Trevor Schoonmaker, Mary D.B.T. and James H. Semans Director, Nasher Museum
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Trevor Schoonmaker Named Director of Nasher Museum
NEW DIRECTOR ANNOUNCEMENT

Trevor Schoonmaker Named Director of Nasher Museum

"Trevor is a star curator who has been instrumental in building the Nasher Museum’s contemporary art collection while establishing its reputation as one of the most respected and admired university art museums in the country. A true visionary, Trevor embodies that rare combination of gifts: a brilliant mind, the ability to prioritize and focus and a propensity for unique ideas that are not only home runs, but are possible to execute leveraging the many talents of the Nasher staff."
–Sally Kornbluth, Provost, Duke University

Theresa Chromati, tearing me apart, so much so that I become beautiful ( woman exploring a smile ), 2019. Acrylic, glitter, and vinyl plastic on mdf and canvas; 90 × 90 inches (228.6 × 228.6 cm). Collection of the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University. Museum purchase with funds provided by Doug Smooke (A.B.’90) and Kim Blackwell (A.B.’89, H.S.’94-’00), 2020.1.1. © Theresa Chromati. Image courtesy of the artist and Jeffrey Deitch and Kravets Wehby, New York.
New to the Collection

Theresa Chromati, tearing me apart, so much so that I become beautiful ( woman exploring a smile )

Theresa Chromati makes large-scale paintings of women of color that explore vulnerability, sexuality and the dynamics of gender and race.

NASHER'S GREATEST HITS

Light in the Attic

Take a deep dive into stories from our history: podcasts, videos and articles

WATCH VIDEO

In the artist’s own words: Ebony G. Patterson

Ebony Patterson speaks about her exhibition Ebony G. Patterson ...while the dew is still on the roses...
Virtual for now. We look forward to opening to visitors again when it is safe.

WE MISS DUKE STUDENTS

Learning at the Nasher

"Storytelling is an exercise in empathy. I am incredibly thankful to Duke and to the Nasher Museum for instilling in me my improved ability to tell stories with empathy and my everlasting habit of asking why.”
— Natalie Benderly, Duke Class of 2020

FOR FAMILIES & TEACHERS

Art Activity: Shadow Hunting

Make a drawing of shadows for a visual record of the Earth rotating!

Zanele Muholi, Basizeni XI, Cassilhaus, North Carolina (detail), 2016. Gelatin silver print, 31 1/2 × 24 inches (80 × 60.9 cm). Collection of the Nasher Museum. Museum purchase. Image courtesy of the artist, Yancey Richardson Gallery, New York, and Stevenson Cape Town/Johannesburg. © Zanele Muholi.
ONLINE STUDENT PROJECT

Dreams of Defiance: Black Feminist Fantasy and the Direct Gaze

Dreams of Defiance: Black Feminist Fantasy and the Direct Gaze is a multi-media project by Ashleigh Smith, Duke Class of 2020. This project moved online when the museum closed temporarily in March 2020 for health and safety reasons.

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Nasher Museum members help support exciting, internationally renowned exhibitions and free K-12 education programs to thousands of students from Durham public schools and beyond.

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From presenting a dynamic array of nationally and internationally acclaimed exhibitions, to offering a comprehensive range of educational programs that benefit our campus and community, to maintaining the facilities within our landmark building – your gift helps us do it all.

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The health and safety of our community is our top priority. In accordance with Duke University, the museum is closed to visitors until further notice. The café and store are closed. Find updates and the latest information on Duke’s Coronavirus Response website.