KCAI Permanent Collection

The Artspace houses and provides stewardship for the Kansas City Art Institute’s permanent collection of fine art. KCAI began acquiring works in 1885 and the collection includes an eclectic range of over 1000 objects, including painting, sculpture, ceramics, contemporary and historical prints, works on paper, design objects, folk art, outdoor sculpture, and a range of decorative art and collectibles.

As a teaching collection, exhibitions organized from the permanent collection complement programming at the Artspace in focused thematic exhibitions, Selections from the Collection, presented in the Roger L. and Joni Cohen Resource Room at the Artspace, curated by Artspace staff. Academic Interns have opportunities to provide curatorial and stewardship support for the permanent collection, including curating a Selections from the Collection exhibition or other special projects in the Roger L. & Joni Cohen Resource Room.

The KCAI permanent collection has the largest holdings of artwork by the Missouri self-taught artist, Jesse Howard, with over 100 signs and sculptures by Howard. This extraordinary collection has been featured in Main Gallery exhibitions at the Artspace, including Signs of the Times, and Now Read On: Jesse Howard and Roger Brown. The permanent collection also features a special collection of prints produced by Landfall Press, owned and operated by Jack Lemon out of Santa Fe, New Mexico. These works have been featured in Artspace exhibitions including: Landfall Press: 1970 – 2000; Big and Beautiful; Storyline: Inviting Narratives; Process in Printmaking; and Chicago Art: Early and Contemporary Imagery and Influence.

Heather Lustfeldt, Assistant Curator, Artspace and Brendan Meara, 2004-2005 Block Intern