Frist Art Museum
Frist Art Museum
4.5
10:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 8:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Sunday
1:00 PM - 5:30 PM
About
Since opening in 2001, the Frist Art Museum has hosted a spectacular array of art from around the world. Not only an important cultural focal point for the city of Nashville, it is also a significant architectural structure, occupying one of Nashville’s great historic landmarks, the former main post office. Constructed from 1933 to 1934 under the direction of the local architectural firm of Marr & Holman, it displays both of the most distinctive architectural styles of the period: Classicism and Art Deco.
Duration: 2-3 hours
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- abroadwithashleyMinneapolis, Minnesota1,723 contributionsGreat Special ExhibitsWe went in June of 2023 to see a special exhibit about the history of the guitar in art. It was fantastic and had some incredible pieces. But this isn’t permanent. That’s typically fine except the museum does not display a large permanent collection you would anticipate from a museum in a large city. So while our experience was great, yours may not be. Ultimately, check beforehand for what is on display.Visited June 2023Traveled as a coupleWritten October 10, 2023
- JCW703Jerusalem District, Israel3,143 contributionsAn Art Deco CuriosityI was warned by the attendant that much of the museum was closed due to them changing out their exhibits. This was disappointing as I only had limited time in Nashville. That said, it was still a very interesting building (a former post office) that has been well preserved.Visited May 2024Traveled soloWritten May 21, 2024
- luncharmAuburn, Alabama8 contributionsPerfect contrast and complement to Nashville popular sceneBeautiful space. Stark contrast to the energy of Broadway and very cool on a hot day. I saw RendezVous which was powerful and moving. Spent about 45 minutes to an hour and could've spent another hour or two. Very cool community art exhibition Black Joy, in spite of... Didn't spend enough time with other exhibitions to do justice here.Visited June 2024Traveled soloWritten June 15, 2024
- displaynonamePlymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania50 contributionsFun unexpected find during Nashville weekend.Beautiful space. Renovated old post office. Unique art. Spent about an hour and half seeing two larger and one smaller exhibitions. Worth the $15 entrance. Not crowded on Saturday morning of July 4 weekend. Some kind of children’s interactive space which looked fun. Only couple blocks up from all the bars on Broadway. Would recommend.Visited July 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten July 7, 2024
- Lezlie GWetumpka, Alabama227 contributionsNice MuseumAt the time I visited there was an Alexander McQueen exhibit, and it was amazing. I love fashion, so this was perfect. I also enjoyed the Black Joy exhibit. This is a really nice museum, definitely worth a visit.Visited June 2024Traveled soloWritten July 13, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
1,032 reviews
Excellent
613
Very good
299
Average
71
Poor
29
Terrible
21
dereksantiago
Madison, AL235 contributions
Jul 2020 • Couples
The art gallery was nice. They showed several artist exhibits of water colo and oil paintings.
The museum building was very unique. The cost was $15.00 per person. The parking was expensive at $10.00 an hour. We drove to the side of the museum on 9th Avenue and used the parking meter at $2.25 an hour for 2 hours. Bring lots of change for the downtown Nashville parking meters from 8am - 6pm. Its free on Sunday and after 6pm.
The museum building was very unique. The cost was $15.00 per person. The parking was expensive at $10.00 an hour. We drove to the side of the museum on 9th Avenue and used the parking meter at $2.25 an hour for 2 hours. Bring lots of change for the downtown Nashville parking meters from 8am - 6pm. Its free on Sunday and after 6pm.
Written July 20, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
scott r
Silver Spring, MD779 contributions
Jul 2020
Close to a waste of time. The building is architecturally interesting, though much of it is roped off due to virus panic. When I went there were 4 exhibits: the draw being Turner. However, there are maybe one or two major works on display and an over reliance of sketches and studies either shows inability to assemble the collection or catering to those seriously devoted fans who hunger for the artist's early development. A lot of Turner, not the best of Turner. the other three exhibits, as it were, are eminently forgettable - all 'performance art' type pieces, two with points of view that are primarily self-indulgent even when purporting to focus on someone else, and one which does have a message; it just felt undeveloped. These last three can be viewed in the combined span of 15-20 minutes, meaning the whole tour speeds by for your admission fee plus parking. One grace note is that the ticket does buy you discounted parking, so you can walk downtown and explore for an hour or three without having to pay mercenary Nashville parking prices. Perhaps that's the lasting recommendation.
Written July 16, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Stewart9481
Guilderland, NY16 contributions
Mar 2020
Can't understand all the great reviews. Admit we have visited 100's of galleries and museums, large and small, all over US and overseas, but the Frist was a huge disappointment. The building (an old art-deco Post Office) is interesting but beyond that, there was little to see. The Joseph Turner exhibition (by far, more than 50% of the art on display at the time) consisted of a lot of pieces that were "drafts", experiments or unfinished, for one reason or another. Not a single framed work by any other artist. Unless you are a big fan of that artist or particular style of art, it gets old fast. Beyond that, there were a few pieces of "modern" art on display and a large interactive area for children (and adults) to try their hand at different art mediums. There was also another area being "prepared" for upcoming exhibitions but there was little room remaining for that to occur. Would have been nice to know from staff beforehand that approx 40% of display areas were awaiting art installation. Cost of $10 for seniors was still not worth it. If you are in Nashville, have a rainy day or need a break from the country music, give it a try, otherwise, a big disappointment
Written March 9, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
PittsDriver
St. Louis62 contributions
Sep 2020
The building is very nice and the people were very pleasant. Parking is available in a lot with attendant-less service and large discount with validation at the museum. We did not care for the "Flag Exchange" or "Return to Sender" exhibits, but the "First Time Voters" was good. I was expecting more than 3 exhibits in such a large building.
Written September 23, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
spencerusa
South Miami, FL442 contributions
Feb 2020 • Friends
Probably the worst art museum in any major city in America. Amazed that the Frist family would lend its name to such a second rate operation. As a visitor to Nashville, this museum is way short of what I’d expect from a city of this size and stature.
Inconsequential permanent collection and traveling exhibits that vary highly in quality, including some that seem a bit simplistic, presumably to attract a broader audience.
The extensive gift shop barely has a single art book on sale. That tells you something!
Inconsequential permanent collection and traveling exhibits that vary highly in quality, including some that seem a bit simplistic, presumably to attract a broader audience.
The extensive gift shop barely has a single art book on sale. That tells you something!
Written February 2, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LeslieinTN
Jonesborough, TN758 contributions
May 2022
We were only in Nashville for one night while moving our son back home from college. My daughter wanted to do something fun so we picked this art museum as we haven't visited it yet. It only had the one exhibit, but it was perfect to fill a couple of hours before dinner. Plus, we loved the exhibit (Alma W. Thomas)!! When we were leaving we asked one of the staff members about the architecture, and she took time telling us the history of the building as well. She was so friendly and a delight to talk to! We will definitely go back in the future. Parking for the museum is not free, but they do offer a voucher which reduced ours to $4 for 2.5 hours.
Written May 7, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
60Ev
Medway, UK189 contributions
Jan 2020 • Couples
We spent quite some time here seeing 3 exhibitions, playing in the interactive space, listening to music in the cafe and drinking good coffee and eating delicious cake. We actually went here twice. The exhibition about indigenous women and art was fascinating and emotive. A graffiti style exhibit by Brazilian twin artists was bright, colourful and made me smile. Upstairs was a display based on the Hungry Catapilla and our favourite bit was the interactive art studio which is open to children and adults alike. Staff are friendly here, it is near the centre and a good place to chill out. Thursday night's are late opening and this is when we heard the music in the cafe.
Written January 12, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
EGRap
Missouri City, TX945 contributions
Feb 2020
Our ticket from the Country Music Hall of Fame allowed us to visit the Frist at no cost. We really appreciated the Hungry Caterpillar art and history; however, all the other sections of the museum were closed so we left feeling like there could have been a lot more to see..
Noting the staff was very friendly and welcoming to our family and it has a nice vibe to walk through the museum.. just felt like it could be a lot more than one exhibit.
Noting the staff was very friendly and welcoming to our family and it has a nice vibe to walk through the museum.. just felt like it could be a lot more than one exhibit.
Written March 30, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Greenhorn
30 contributions
Feb 2020
...visit this museum. In addition to enjoying the art on display, see this wonderful building. And bring your studioB ticket along for free admission.
The Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851) Exhibition: Quest for the Sublime lasts until 31 May 2020 and is NOT to be missed!
The Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851) Exhibition: Quest for the Sublime lasts until 31 May 2020 and is NOT to be missed!
Written March 7, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
David S
Saint Louis, MO317 contributions
Mar 2022
We stumbled into a free architectural tour of the building that houses the Frist Art Museum (FAM). The tour was great. The lady who did the tour was involved in the formation of the FAM which is a publicly supported museum.
The FAM does not own there own collection which means every show is a special event. It is a bit costly to enter the galleries but you can see part of the building for free.
The building is a former central post office and is itself a work of art.
We did not see the entire show but what we saw on the architectural tour was incredible. We have been to countless art museums and this one is very interesting. How you like it may be predicated on the show that they have installed at the time. No matter what, go see the building.
Enjoy!
The FAM does not own there own collection which means every show is a special event. It is a bit costly to enter the galleries but you can see part of the building for free.
The building is a former central post office and is itself a work of art.
We did not see the entire show but what we saw on the architectural tour was incredible. We have been to countless art museums and this one is very interesting. How you like it may be predicated on the show that they have installed at the time. No matter what, go see the building.
Enjoy!
Written April 7, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is the museum open on any holidays? I called on MLK, Jr. holiday and since the live operator didn’t answer I assumed it is closed that day, as is the Nashville Main Library. I could find nothing here at Trip Advisor or on the museum web site that addressed closure on holidays.
Written January 20, 2020
I guess they are closed. If you called both places and received no answer that's all you can do.
Written January 21, 2020
Do you need to pay adult admission to just accompany the kids to the children art section upstairs?
Written June 26, 2019
How long does it usually take to get through the museum?
Written July 14, 2017
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