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Fall in love with art, culture and history at WVU museums and galleries

WVU Art Museum

Art and culture are everywhere at WVU. With more than a dozen museums and galleries, fall is the perfect time to explore campus.  

The Art Museum of WVU currently has two exhibits that speak to our world’s present. 

“Mapping Climate Change: The Knitting Map and The Tapestry Project” uses textiles to visualize how the world is warming. The works on exhibit translate temperature, precipitation, humidity or wind speed into colorful “maps” of our environment. 

“Our Votes, Our Values” engages with national conversations about the 2024 election and how values are connected to election choices. 

In addition, the Grand Hall of the Museum Education Center at the Art Museum will serve as an early voting site for Monongalia County through Saturday (Nov. 2).

Don’t miss the West Virginia and Regional History Center exhibit “Living the Folklife: Monsters, Music, Medicine, Myths and More“ on the sixth floor of the Downtown Library. Unveiled on West Virginia Day in June, the exhibit explores the stories behind West Virginia cryptids, examines the John Henry legend and highlights the state's rich history of folk music, particularly in the Louis V. Chappell collection. Living the Folklife also showcases folk medicine, enduring stories and tales, local foods and folk customs that are represented in the collections at the WVRHC. 

Visit all three campus libraries to enjoy the exhibits presented by Arts in the Libraries. 

This year’s main exhibit is located on the first floor of the Downtown Library. “WVU Art in the Libraries: Retrospective, 2015-2024” showcases 10 years of exhibits and programs. Also at the Downtown Library are the graduate student award and faculty award exhibits. While you’re there, don’t miss the rotating exhibits in the John D. Rockefeller IV Gallery, the Milano Reading Room and the Alumni Lobby at the library entrance. Currently in the Rockefeller Gallery is an exhibit that tells the remarkable life story of John W. Davis, a West Virginian from Clarksburg and one of the most respected attorneys in the United States.

The Evansdale Library is hosting a selection of the “Healthcare is Human” exhibit and a material culture exhibit of objects related to the history of voting. At the Health Sciences Center, this year’s main exhibit is a celebration of the American Paw Paw, a West Virginia favorite. The exhibit is a photographic study of the fallen Paw Paw by Randi Ward and a new way to view the state’s unique ecosystem. 

At the Health Sciences Library you can view “Prescriptions for Change: Value Voting in Healthcare,” which is a mixed media exhibit from “Skyrocket: What Drug Prices Do, by Katy Giebenhain” and the interprofessional award winning project on the importance of fluoride varnish in pediatric oncology care. 

You can find more rotating art exhibits at Mesaros Galleries at the WVU Canady Creative Arts Center and the Nutting Gallery at the Erickson Alumni Center. Also, plan a visit to the Natural History Museum in Percival Hall or the Watts Museum in the Mineral Resources Building in Evansdale. And, if you’re going to a game, check out the Robinson/Petroplus Hall of Traditions at the Basketball Practice Facility or the Hall of Traditions at Milan Puskar Center. 

At the Health Sciences Center you can make an appointment to tour the Cook-Hayman Pharmacy Museum or explore the William A. Neal Museum of the Health Sciences. The Neal Museum has a current exhibit on the White Coat Ceremony and will soon install exhibits about St. Mary’s Hospital in Clarksburg and Black hospitals in West Virginia from 1900-1960. 

Find more information and plan your fall tour of WVU museums and galleries.