Founded in 1959, the Art, Design & Architecture Museum at the University of California, Santa Barbara is a teaching museum committed to the development of critical thinking and visual literacy in support of the University’s goals of research, teaching, and service, and is a resource for the Santa Barbara community and surrounding region. The Museum is home to the renowned Architecture and Design Collection (ADC), the definitive archive of architecture and design from the 19th century to the present focusing on Southern California. The encyclopedic Art Collection reflects the teaching areas of the art history faculty.
Serving more than 25,000 UCSB students, the AD&A Museum is an integral part of campus life providing innovative object-centered teaching that trains future generations of museum professionals, while also offering engaging programs that attract audiences beyond the campus. The Museum’s program emphasizes regional art practices rooted in the Central Coast and Southern California that explore the common threads of our region’s history, environment, and cultural diaspora, reaching audiences throughout California, the United States, and beyond.
MUSEUM COLLECTIONS
Of considerable breadth for a museum of its size, the AD&A Museum’s Art Collections includes the Morgenroth Collection of Renaissance Medals and Plaquettes, the Sedgwick Collection of Old Master Paintings, the Feitelson Collection of Old Master Drawings, the Ken Trevey Collection of American Realist Prints, the Fernand Lungren Collection, and a growing collection of contemporary artwork in all media. Contemporary holdings focus on artists active in California, particularly in the Santa Barbara community. The Architecture and Design Collection (ADC) at the AD&A Museum is a world-renowned resource for the research and study of the built environment in Southern California from the late 19th century to today. Founded in 1963 by architectural historian, and first director of the AD&A Museum, David Gebhard, the Collection has grown over the last six decades to include nearly 330 archives of architects, landscape architects and industrial and graphic designers. Among these are notable creators such as Gregory Ain, Albert Frey, Edward Killingsworth, Barton Phelps, Lutah Maria Riggs, Rudolph Schindler and Robert Stacey Judd, to name just a few. Additionally, the ADC comprises a section of furniture items by designers such as Ray and Charles Eames, Eero Saarinen and Paul Tuttle.
TIPS FOR YOUR VISIT
Admission to all exhibitions and programs at the AD&A Museum is free, unless otherwise noted. Wednesday-Sunday: 12pm to 5pm. Guided tours can be arranged upon request for classes, groups, and community organizations. Please fill out our tour registration form here. The AD&A Museum is located adjacent to the University Center and Storke Plaza/Tower. We recommend parking in Lot #22 during the week or Lot #3 during the weekend. Please view the campus map below for details. On campus regular parking is $8 for the full day. All parking lots are equipped with a Pay Station which will accept credit/debit cards. The ParkMobile app is also available. For additional information on parking rates, and the option to purchase a parking permit in advance, please visit Parking Services.