Description

Locals and visitors to New Orleans relish the impressive architecture of the modern spaces that make up the Ogden Museum of Southern Art.  Known to locals as the "O", the museum is poised to become the home of one of the largest exhibitors of regional southern art in the Unites States.

Permanent collection highlights include Ida Kohlmeyer’s creations, which use shape and balance to draw attention to detail — a feature that draws the viewer into her message.  "Fenestrated#6" and "City Scape New Orleans" are standouts in this collection. Delight in the creations of William Mooreland, housed in the Mary Lee Eggart Collection, which showcases the artist’s natural studies over the length of his career and captures the essence of Mooreland's love of the natural world in his abstract nature scenes.

The Ogden transitions seamlessly from modern abstract to folk art in the Andrews-Humphrey Collection, which includes artist Benny Andrews’ figurative works that capture the people of the south, and a culture that has piqued the interest of visitors from all over the world.
Perhaps the most impressive permanent collection inside the "O" is the Ogden Collection itself.  Started in the 1960s, the collection is that of Roger H. Ogden and is widely considered one of the most impressive collections of Southern art in its time. Artists like Frederich Trenchard, Will Henry Stevens, and William Dunlap, are featured here.  Trenchard’s "Liberty Leading the People" is a must-see.

Special events are de rigeur at the Ogden. Locals find fun and flare in events like the "O Mazing Race", where teams are sent through the French Quarter on a scavenger hunt. Tattoos are gotten, items are found, galleries are located, and hidden treasures become the center of this event designed to raise funds for the maintenance and upkeep of the museum and its collections.  "O" What A Night" is designed to bring collectors, donors, and personnel together to enjoy the museum and ensure it continues on its journey of spreading knowledge and support of southern art.  
No visit to the "O" would be complete without a little shopping at the museum gift shop and the Center for Southern Craft and Design.  The gift shop is stocked with memorabilia from a visit, as well as reproductions of housed works and traveling exhibits.  The shop is open during museum business hours only.  The CSCD offers visitors a chance to walk away with an original creation from one of many Southern artists.

To fully experience all that the Ogden Museum of Southern Art has to offer, allow about three hours for an unguided tour.  Guided group tours can last up to five hours.

Located in the Warehouse District, the museum is steps away from the National World War II Museum, coffee shops and several essential New Orleans restaurants, the Ernest J. Morial Convention Center and Lee Circle (read: great photo op).