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The Mobile Museum of Art (MMA) is the visual arts museum for the City of Mobile and the southeastern Gulf Coast region. It is the mission of the museum to provide a place where people enrich their lives through interaction with the visual arts in thought-provoking and creative ways that nourish and delight the mind and spirit. For the fundamental purpose of education, the museum collects, conserves, exhibits, interprets and researches art. Truly, the Mobile Museum of Art is a place where 鈥渃omplete and unhindered communication鈥� enriches our individual lives and the community life of our city and region.

Mobile Museum of Art began with the activities of the Mobile Art Association, an organization that wanted to establish a physical home for the visual arts in Mobile. The association began moving the idea forward in 1957. By the 1960s, through the leadership of Mayor Joseph Langan, the concept had taken root in a project in partnership with the City of Mobile. The Mobile Art Gallery was established by the city in 1963 and incorporated in 1964. In December 1964, the gallery opened in a 14,000 square foot building. Its initial activities included changing exhibitions, classes and art programs, mandated by the organization鈥檚 statement of purpose.

In 1975, the name of the organization was changed from the Mobile Art Gallery to the Fine Arts Museum of the South at Mobile, or FAMOS as it came to be known. The name change reflected the actuality of an expanded, more regional focus and an emphasis on southern art. As collections grew and the community鈥檚 response to the museum increased, the need for additional space became obvious. In 1976, a new wing of 13,500 square feet was added.

In 1994, the Board of Directors changed the name to the Mobile Museum of Art to emphasize the location of the museum and the ever-broadening scope of its collections, exhibitions and programs. In November 1996, the American Association of Museums (AAM), the culmination of a lengthy process of evaluation, self-study, policy development and operational improvement, accredited the Mobile Museum of Art. MMA is the only museum of any kind in the southern half of Alabama to achieve national accreditation by the AAM, a process that took eight years to complete.

Following an ambitious fundraising campaign, the renovated and expanded $15 million, 95,000 square foot Langan Park facility reopened to the public in September 2002.The museum鈥檚 permanent collection numbers over 7,000 works of art and spans 2,000 years of cultural history. Its strengths lie in its collections of American art of the 1930s and 1940s, 20th century work by Southern artists, art of the French Barbizon school, contemporary American crafts, and American art of the late 19th century. It does have holdings in Asian, African, and European works as well. Generally, 5% to 10% of the collection is rotated on display in the permanent collection galleries. The museum also features 18 to 22 changing exhibitions annually that relate to or supplement the educational role of the collections.

The education department provides a wide range of visual arts programs and activities for persons of all ages and interest levels. These include classes, workshops, films, lectures, demonstrations, guided tours, performances, seminars, travel opportunities, specialized training and opportunities for volunteer service.