Metal Museum Announces First Exhibitions for Its New Overton Park Home
Big news for Memphis art lovers: the Metal Museum is opening the doors on its new Overton Park home this September, and it's coming in hot with two brand-new exhibitions that celebrate nearly 50 years of metal arts history in the Bluff City.
Big news for Memphis art lovers: the Metal Museum is opening the doors on its new Overton Park home this September, and it's coming in hot with two brand-new exhibitions that celebrate nearly 50 years of metal arts history in the Bluff City.
If you're not familiar, the Metal Museum is a Memphis original. It's the only institution in the world devoted entirely to fine metalwork, from sculpture to jewelry to functional decorative pieces. For decades it's called the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River home, but after a $35 million expansion and endowment campaign, the museum is putting down new roots in the heart of Midtown.
What's Opening
What's Opening
Mark your calendar for Saturday, September 5, 2026! That's the museum's Grand Opening, and it'll debut with two exhibitions:
From the Bluff to the Park: The Metal Museum's Collections Through Time (on view through March 21, 2027) is the headliner, spread across the second and third-floor galleries. It traces the museum's journey from its 1979 founding on the river bluff all the way to this new Overton Park chapter, showcasing decorative and functional pieces, sculpture, jewelry, and contemporary metalwork spanning the 1800s to today. Think of it as a highlight reel of nearly five decades of collecting, featuring both historical treasures and recent acquisitions from contemporary artists.
Strike! Pour! Create!: Works by Metal Museum Apprentices (on view through January 31, 2027) shines a light on one of the museum's most meaningful programs — its apprenticeship initiative. The show features work from more than twenty artists who came up through the program, tracing how it's launched careers, kept traditional metalsmithing techniques alive, and pushed the craft forward.
Both exhibitions are included with general admission, and both are part of Handwork 2026, Craft in America's nationwide celebration of handmade craft for the country's 250th anniversary.
Why This is a Big Deal!
Memphis is experiencing a really great moment in arts and culture with new openings, expansions and major milestones. The city has always been the epicenter of culture and you can feel the buzz. This isn't just a new address for the Metal Museum. This is the next era for an institution that's become a true center for metal arts. The move to Overton Park brings more visibility, better accessibility, and dedicated space for exhibitions, collections, the Windgate Metal Studio, and education programs.
As Ashley Walker, Director of Collections and Exhibitions, and Thais Lloyd, Exhibitions Manager, put it: "We wanted to showcase the breadth of the collection while looking toward the future and celebrating some of the major heavy hitters who have made a great impact on both the field and the Museum. Both shows aim to honor our history while celebrating our transition and expansion."
Plan Your Visit
In the meantime, the Metal Museum is still open at it's downtown location with hours of Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with free admission for Tennessee residents (with photo ID) every Thursday. Tickets range from $4-$8 with free admission for children 5 and under. The Metal Museum's current and final exhibit at this location, What We Surround Ourselves, closes after July 31.
For more information, visit metalmuseum.org.
Comments Make Us Happy