Mattatuck Museum

08/31/2026

Looking for a venue for your next event? Here are five reasons to host it at the MATT

08/30/2026

On this day, 80 years ago, pioneering architect Theodate Pope Riddle died at her home in Farmington, Connecticut.

Her legacy, however, can still be seen throughout the state, including at Highfield, the Middlebury estate she designed for Joseph and Elizabeth Chamberlain between 1911 and 1914.

At a time when architecture was overwhelmingly a man’s profession, Pope forged her own path. Without formal architectural training, she designed homes and schools throughout Connecticut, developed a distinctive English Arts & Crafts–style aesthetic, and challenged expectations about what a woman could accomplish. In 1918, she became one of the first five women admitted to the American Institute of Architects.

Our exhibition, Theodate Pope’s Highfield: A History, explores the history of this remarkable estate through photographs from the Chamberlains’ family albums and materials related to Pope’s design.

As we remember Pope 80 years after her death, we invite you to discover the story behind Highfield, and the woman who designed it.

Theodate Pope’s Highfield: A History is on view in our History Gallery through December 13.

Thank you for the support of Hill-Stead Museum in the research for this exhibition.

08/29/2026

08/29/2026

Coming Up This Fall at the MATT! 🍂

This fall, three new exhibitions invite you to explore photography, art and archives, and the remarkable creative world of a Waterbury-born artist.

Ming Smith: Jazz Requiem – Notations in Blue
Aug. 29, 2026–Jan. 17, 2027
A richly layered exploration of movement, memory, and visual rhythm spanning Ming Smith’s groundbreaking photographic practice from the 1970s to today.

Sonja Langford: Archives of Care
Sept. 26, 2026–Jan. 3, 2027
Through quilt-inspired wall hangings, photography, and installation, Sonja Langford examines women’s experiences navigating the medical field and the complex history of healthcare access and bodily autonomy.

Franne Davids and the World She Painted
Oct. 10, 2026–Feb. 14, 2027
Discover the imaginative world of Waterbury-born artist Franne Davids (1950–2022), whose more than 400 paintings offered companionship and connection through the feminine figures she called her “girls.”

✨ Celebrate all three exhibitions with us on Sunday, Oct. 11, from 1–4 PM. Remarks begin at 1:30 PM, with $5 reduced admission all day.



Images:
(First) Ming Smith, Pharoah Sanders and the Bottom Line, 1977, archival pigment print on dibond, 47 x 72 inches. Courtesy of the artist and The Gund at Kenyon College. (Second) Sonja Langford, Score 11, 2026, archival pigment print, 40 x 60 inches. Courtesy of the artist. (Third) Franne Davids, Untitled, c. 1979–2018, oil on canvas, 48 x 60 inches. © Estate of Franne Davids, courtesy Ricco/Maresca.

08/28/2026

Make your moment a work of art.

Planning a wedding, anniversary, shower, birthday, or other milestone?

Celebrate somewhere unexpected.

The MATT offers a one-of-a-kind backdrop for the moments you'll remember long after the last guest leaves.

Your celebration. Your vision. Our canvas.

08/27/2026

Today, we join museums and art lovers around the world in remembering Yayoi Kusama, the pioneering Japanese artist whose visionary work transformed the possibilities of repetition, pattern, color, and space.

Repetition is a defining element of Yayoi Kusama’s artistic practice. From intricate nets and swirling patterns to her signature polka dots, Kusama uses repeated forms to transform paintings, sculptures, and immersive environments.

The MATT is proud to have two of Kusama’s iconic spotted pumpkins in its collection. These works have become particular favorites among staff and the school groups who visit our galleries, offering students an opportunity to experience the playful yet highly intentional nature of Kusama’s work.

Inspired by the artist’s use of pattern, color, and repetition, our Education team invited young artists to create their own dot-filled works of art.

Through hands-on learning and close looking, students explored how repetition can become a powerful tool for artistic expression.

08/26/2026

Coming Soon: Ming Smith: Jazz Requiem – Notations in Blue in Whittemore and Noonan Galleries| Aug. 29, 2026 – Jan. 17, 2027

Photographer Ming Smith’s groundbreaking practice embraces spontaneous rhythms, experimentation, and the influences of dance and music. Ming Smith: Jazz Requiem – Notations in Blue traces her groundbreaking practice from the 1970s to the present, including her formative years traveling throughout Europe, examining how these experiences shape her practice. The photographs on view—many printed for the first time—aim to capture the intricacies of Black experience, within and beyond specific places, and demonstrate her elusive yet poignant depictions of soon-vanishing qualities of a moment in movement.
Throughout her artwork, the artist embodies a central tenet of the Black Arts Movement: “owning the images that we saw of ourselves.” Smith’s practice extends beyond realism and documentation: she actively confronts notions of the gaze and power inherent to photography. Through experimentation and visual meditations, Smith positions herself as a vanguard, pursuing image-making as a way to remember, share, and deeply feel the world around her.

Ming Smith: Jazz Requiem – Notations in Blue is curated by Daisy Desrosiers, David and Francie Horvitz Family Foundation Director and Chief Curator of The Gund at Kenyon College.

Generous support provided by Art Bridges
This exhibition was made possible through support from the Terra Foundation for American Art.

08/25/2026

TRAVEL WITH THE MATT | Gems of Greece: Athens, Naxos & Crete
The Mattatuck Museum invites you to join us on an extraordinary 14-day cultural journey through Greece, exploring ancient history, island traditions, and contemporary Greek life.

📅 April 3–16, 2027
💰 From 7,299 USD per person
🍽️ 21 meals included
✈️ Travel Style: Explorations

From Athens to Naxos and Crete, this immersive experience offers meaningful encounters with local culture, cuisine, and heritage.

Highlights include:
Guided visit to the Acropolis & Acropolis Museum
Naxos & Lesser Cyclades day cruise
Knossos Palace exploration
Olive oil and wine tastings
Traditional Cretan cooking class in Archanes
Kitron distillery visit and tasting
Pottery demonstration and folk dance dinner

Participants will also connect with local communities, including a visit to Shedia Home in Athens, supporting social impact through arts and hospitality.

This curated travel program offers museum supporters and travelers a unique opportunity to explore Greece through a cultural and educational lens.

📍 For details and registration, visit the museum website or contact Bobbi Nappi at Largay Travel
Waterbury, CT (203) 757-9481 x3009

08/24/2026

Over thousands of years, diverse Indigenous groups from Central and South America populated the islands of the Caribbean. About 1,000 years ago, Arawak-speaking peoples began developing a shared culture across the northern Caribbean islands. Despite regional differences, these peoples, first called Taíno by linguists and archaeologists, were connected through language, trade, religion, and political and family networks.

Words from the islands’ Arawak languages are still used across the Caribbean and throughout the world. In the Caribbean specifically, many places still have their original Indigenous names. Hamaca, is one of those surviving Arawak words. Coming from the Taíno word “hamaca”, a hammock is a traditional Indigenous bed suspended by cords at the ends.

Leonarda “Doña Esmeralda” Morales-Acevedo was born into a hammock-making family in San Sebastián, Puerto Rico. In this image, she works from home, stripping fiber from local magüey plants to make thread for weaving hammocks.

Photo courtesy of Christina M. González, image taken with support from the National Science Foundation

Caribbean Indigenous Resistance / Resistencia indígena del Caribe ¡Taíno Vive! is organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service in collaboration with the National Museum of the American Indian and the National Museum of the American Latino.

This exhibition received federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the National Museum of the American Latino.

The exhibition is co-presented by the Mattatuck Museum and the Afro Caribbean Cultural Center. The Mattatuck thanks the Yale Peabody Museum and cultural consultants Stephanie Bailey (Indigenous Caribbean descent from Boriken) and Sanakori (Taíno from Boriken) for lending additional expertise and objects to our presentation.

08/23/2026

26,200 Cheers for MattaTrek Success! - https://mailchi.mp/mattatuckmuseum/tomorrow-cocktails-conversations-with-aj-masthay-and-helen-kennedy-4289350

A HUGE thank you to everyone who made **MattaTrek 2026** possible

From our 26.2-mile marathon hikers and 5K participants to our donors, volunteers, staff, board, and incredible sponsors — **you helped us reach our goal!**
Special thanks to Hubbard Hall, Litchfield Distillery, Post University, and all of our generous sponsors for supporting the MATT and helping bring art, history, wellness, and community together.