The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts has unveiled a wide-ranging wave of acquisitions spanning all ten of its curatorial departments, adding depth to a collection that now reflects both historical milestones and contemporary voices. Over the past year, the museum acquired 808 artworks and received 2,506 gifts from more than 50 donors, including a major donation of 1,989 photographs from Joy of Giving Something, Inc.
The new holdings bring together pieces from different eras and mediums, from a 2025 wall relief by Vietnamese-born artist Tuan Andrew Nguyen to an 1865 silver print by French photographer Nadar. The museum also expanded its support for artists connected to Virginia through its fellowship program, with acquisitions by creators including Adam Pendleton, Ben Durham, Kevin Jerome Everson, Michelle Gagliano, Emmet Gowin, Virginia Granbery, Allyson Gray, Rebecca Hill, Susan Iverson, Aimee Joyaux, Glenn Scarboro and Rippling Water/Christine Custalow.
Among the highlighted works, Paul Signac's The Haystack shows an early step in the evolution from Impressionism to Post-Impressionism. Theresa Bernstein's Sun, Sand, and Sea captures a lively beach scene shaped by realist traditions. Roberto Lugo's Roundel with Boy from the Hood bridges ceramic heritage and contemporary culture, while Jaune Quick-to-See Smith's Making Medicine: Coyote (Going Forward, Looking Back) uses sculpture to connect Indigenous storytelling with environmental reflection. Nguyen's Scars transforms brass shell casings into a dragon-like form rooted in Vietnamese symbolism.
VMFA leadership says these additions support a broader mission to widen access to art and strengthen the museum's future galleries as its expansion project continues. The collection's latest chapter suggests a museum model where heritage, innovation and public engagement evolve together.
