The Smith College Museum of Art: A Timeline

Z Stevens ‘25 is a graduate student at the Simmons University School of Library and Information Science. They have worked at SCMA in various capacities since 2023 and are currently the Collections Assistant.

1875: Smith College welcomes its first class of fourteen students.

1879: First purchases for the College Hall art gallery begin. The first recorded purchase is made in February, and Thomas Eakins’ In Grandmother’s Time, SCMA’s first accessioned object, is purchased in May.

Black-and-white photograph of an art gallery with light walls and wood floor. Several painted portraits hang on the walls. Three figures stand throughout the space.
black and white portrait of a person, Rob Macaisa Colgate and a book cover of Hardly Creatures

Visiting Poet Rob Macaisa Colgate

5–6pm
Klingenstein Browsing Room, Neilson Library

Join us for programs with visiting poet Rob Macaisa Colgate

Thursday, February 12
Hardly Creatures: Poems on Access Intimacy and Collective Care
Reading and Q&A 
5-6pm
Klingenstein Browsing Room, Neilson Library, Smith College 
Free and open to all
Join Poet Rob Macaisa Colgate for a reading plus a question and answer session.

Two people standing in front of a painting on the left; three people at a table making art, elderly person on left and two adolescents on the right

February Second Friday

4–8pm
Smith College Museum of Art

SCMA is free and open to all. Come for an evening of art, making, and community. Galleries are open until 8 p.m.

4–7pm 
Drop-in Zine Making (Boeckman Sculpture Court (Museum Atrium)
Create a DIY mini-magazine inspired by the new exhibition Don’t mind if I do. Try prompts like “My favorite artists,” “Things I love,” or “Songs on repeat,” or make your own theme. All ages welcome; no experience needed. Materials provided. Explore the artists on view and the exhibition zine for ideas.

Two photos: on the left is a room of adults and children making art at a table,: on the right are two people looking at a small object with magnifying glasses

January Second Friday

4–8pm
Smith College Museum of Art

Join us from 4–8pm for an evening of art, making, and community at the Smith College Museum of Art.  Galleries are open until 8pm. SCMA is free and open to all!

From 4–7pm Drop in for hands-on art making in the museum atrium All ages welcome. 

Leaving a Legacy Through the Moody Purchase Program

Kaia Austin ‘26 is an Art History Major with a Museums Concentration. They have worked as an Academic Programs Assistant at the SCMA since 2022.


A dilapidated enclosure. A grungy white wall.  Ominous spillage of light. The haunting shadow of a cross that once was. These are the hallmarks of the official 2025 Meredith Moody Purchase photograph Saint Peter by S. Billie Mandle.

Photo of an interior room corner with the wall to the right perforated with small holes and covered in dark blue and brown shadows.
The SOFA Student Art Sale is popping up on Friday, December 5

SOFA Student Art Sale

1-5pm

The SOFA Student Art Sale is popping up on Friday, December 5 from 1–5pm in the Boeckman Sculpture Court (Museum Atrium). Browse standout student-made jewelry, prints, clothing, cards, stickers, and more. Perfect for holiday shopping and end-of-semester thank-you gifts, all made by Smith students.

Presented by the Smith Office for the Arts (SOFA) in partnership with the Smith College Museum of Art.

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