RISD Museum

Rent the Museum: The RISD Museum is a unique venue for your private event—accommodating * corporate meetings * receptions * dinners, and * lectures. Galleries, meeting rooms, a private garden, and our large  auditorium offer you a range of spaces, large and small. In addition to your rented area, you may also have access to the Museum’s galleries—enhancing your guests’ experience. Six distinctive spaces include:

• Grand Gallery: The centerpiece of the RISD Museum visitor experience, the Grand Gallery lives up to its name – offering an elegant and spacious backdrop for receptions, presentations, and banquets.
  • Capacity: A cocktail reception in Grand Gallery accommodates up to 200 guests. The space can accommodate seated dinners for up to 120 guests.
• Metcalf Auditorium: The Michael P. Metcalf Auditorium, located on the ground floor of the Chace Center, seats up to 200 people in fixed theatre seating and has a full spectrum of audio visual capabilities. The adjacent Chace Lobby, a public space, is available for limited use in conjunction with your daytime event and is available outside of Museum public hours for private rental.
  • Capacity: 200.
• Chace Lobby: The sleek lobby of the Jose Rafael Moneo-designed Chace Center provides a modern backdrop for your reception, either on its own or in conjunction with a presentation in Metcalf Auditorium or a visit to adjacent galleries on the floors above.
  • Capacity: 200.
• Cafe Pearl: The Pearl and Ernest Nathan Gallery, home to Café Pearl, is a sophisticated, modern setting for your small cocktail party or casual dinner.
  • Capacity: The space accommodates up to 75 guests for a reception or a seated dinner for up to 40 guests.
• Danforth Hall: The Murray S. Danforth, Jr. and Helen Metcalf Danforth Lecture Hall, Gift of Mrs. Murray S. Danforth Jr., is a flexible space available for board meetings, presentations, cocktail receptions, or seated meals.
  • Capacity: Meetings seat 20 conference-style; presentations 40 lecture-style; receptions can accommodate up to 75 guests; seated meals, up to 60 guests.
• The Radeke Garden: Radeke Garden is an enclosed courtyard featuring a variety of plants including a stately ginkgo tree. Especially beautiful in fall and spring, the Garden is not available in winter or during inclement weather.
  • Capacity: The Garden accommodates up to 75 guests for a reception or a seated dinner for up to 40 guests.

Support RISD Museum… by simply booking your next special occasion here: 

https://risdmuseum.org/rent-museum

Be a DONOR: Show that you care…

Membership

Membership is for everyone. With unlimited free admission for one year, feel at home in the galleries, explore new exhibitions, or share the comprehensive collection with visiting friends and family. Membership also supports access to art and design from ancient times to the present day for others in the galleries and beyond. We offer additional membership options for Rhode Island Artists, recent RISD graduates, newly naturalized U.S. citizens, colleges and universities, and libraries and community organizations. All youth and children aged 18 and under are always invited to visit the RISD Museum free of admission fees.

NOTE: Depending on the membership level, members have access to over 1,000 museums nationwide through our three reciprocal programs. Reciprocity benefits are level-specific. Please note that membership purchases are non-refundable. Choose the membership level that suits you:

Eleven membership levels are offered:

• ARTIST: Discounted rate for one adult who identifies as an artist or designer.
• INDIVIDUAL: One adult.
• PLUS ONE: One adult plus one guest every visit. Card-holding member must be present to admit guest.
• HOUSEHOLD: Two adults in the same household.
• FRIEND: Two adults in the same household. Membership in the Art Museum Reciprocal Network (30+ museums nationwide).
• DONORS’ CIRCLE: Two adults in the same household. Membership in the Art Museum Reciprocal Network (30+ museums nationwide) and Membership in the North American Reciprocal Museum Association (1,000+ museums nationwide).
• CURATORS’ CIRCLE: Two adults in the same household. Membership in the Art Museum Reciprocal Network (30+ museums nationwide), Membership in the North American Reciprocal Museum Association (1,000+ museums nationwide), Invitations to Museum travel opportunities, and Subscription to Manual, a journal about art and its making.
• RADEKE CIRCLE: Two adults in the same household, up to four adults admitted every visit. Radeke Circle members provide critical support for the Museum’s core curatorial, educational, and community activities. Radeke Circle members enjoy special access and additional opportunities: Membership in the Art Museum Reciprocal Network (30+ museums nationwide), Membership in the North American Reciprocal Museum Association (1,000+ museums nationwide), Invitations to Museum travel opportunities, Subscription to Manual, a journal about art and it’s making, One-time guest passes to share with friends and family, Invitations to special events and behind-the-scenes opportunities, Personal invitation to join the director and curators for more intimate events and special travel opportunities, Borrowing privileges at RISD’s Fleet Library, and A private tour with the Museum director or curator (by request).
• Access Membership Options: * RI Artist Membership * RISD Recent Alumni Membership * Welcome Citizen Membership
• Organizational Membership Options: * Library and Community Group Passport Program * College and University Membership

Donation

Every gift to the RISD Museum provides resources to inspire visitors with direct exposure to the work of artists and designers in spaces that encourage looking, critical thinking, and understanding. Education and outreach, collection care, new scholarship, technology, and innovation are all vital components of the Museum’s mission to create an accessible and inclusive environment that builds meaningful relationships across all communities. Giving categories include:

• GIVE ONLINE: The RISD Museum is included under the Rhode Island School of Design 501(c)(3) EIN 05-0258956. Our fiscal year ends on June 30. Thank you for your support of arts education in our community.
• BY PHONE: Call the development office to make a donation by phone or alert us to a donation of stock
• IN PERSON: Make a donation at the Visitors Services desk the next time you visit
• ANNUAL FUND :Your Annual Fund gift goes where the Museum needs it most: supporting vital education programs, including K-12 visits that begin with in-school preparation, family fun at the Museum, and teen and college mentoring and training, investing in the next generation of artists, designers, and museum-goers in our community.
• Donations may be given in any amounts. Recurring gifts are encouraged. Memorial and Tribute gifts are welcomed. Your Company’s Matching Gifts are facilitated. An inventive means of knowing how best to communicate with you has been devised. Selections include: * A mailer I recently received * An email I recently received * A phone call I recently received, and * Other. If you choose, You also may designate whether or not you have included RISD Museum in your estate plans.
• EXHIBITION AND PROGRAM SUPPORT: The RISD Museum is fortunate to partner with businesses who enable us to offer special exhibitions that attract public and critical acclaim, provide educational programming and tours for school children and adults, and care for our collection. Supporters receive a range of benefits, including increased community visibility and business networking opportunities, free or reduced admission for employees, private tours, and the option of renting gallery spaces for corporate entertaining. Exhibition and Program sponsorship offers you significant philanthropic and marketing opportunities. Organizations that sponsor exhibitions, educational programs, or other events reach the Museum’s diverse audience while demonstrating support for the arts. Opportunities for support are available at various levels, and Museum staff will work with you to develop a plan that meets your objectives and budget.
• DONATIONS OF ART: The RISD Museum welcomes donations of works of art that enhance the Museum’s collection, as well as funds to purchase new works that strengthen and broaden it, filling important gaps in time, subject matter, and materials. If you are considering donating art through an outright gift, bequest, or promised gift, contact the Museum.
• PLAN YOUR IMPACT: You can use planned giving (retirement accounts, wills, or trusts) to provide meaningful support for the Museum‘s mission. Including the RISD Museum in your will at any amount is a simple and powerful way to have a lasting impact on the Museum’s future. Call the Museum’s development office to determine the best way to meet your philanthropic goals while supporting the Museum’s important community mission.* How to Make a Bequest to RISD Museum: A bequest is a gift you put in motion now, in your will or living trust, to ensure your support for the Museum never ends. Your gift may take the form of a percentage of your estate, a specific amount, or a particular asset. You may make a bequest by including language in your will or living trust or by designating the RISD Museum as a beneficiary of a retirement account or life insurance policy. The Rhode Island School of Design is a non-profit educational institution that includes both the College and the Museum. You can designate your bequest intention to a specific purpose at the Museum or leave unrestricted to be applied to the area of greatest need, as determined by the director, at the time it is received. * How Bequests Benefit the RISD Museum: Consider what you would like to accomplish with your gift and what parts of the Museum’s mission you would like to support in perpetuity. Unrestricted bequests will be applied to the highest needs of the institution at the time that they are received. If you are thinking about restricting your bequest for a specific purpose, you may wish to consult with the development office to discuss your intentions. For assistance in documenting your intentions, contact the development office * Benefits to You and Your Family  A bequest may be deductible from your taxable estate and thus may help you reduce or avoid estate taxes. A bequest may be deductible from your taxable estate and thus may help you reduce or avoid estate taxes.
• The Jesse + Helen Rowe Metcalf Society
  By sharing your bequest intentions with RISD, you will be enrolled in the Jesse + Helen Rowe Metcalf Society. The Society, named in memory of two people pivotal to the founding of RISD, is an association of supporters who have demonstrated their generosity and commitment to RISD by incorporating the Museum and/or the College into their estate plans. Annual events and communications keep you informed about what’s happening at RISD today and allow us to recognize your intention to make a permanent contribution to the RISD of tomorrow.

Volunteering:

The RISD Museum relies on long-standing ties to two important community organizations that exist to support the museum’s mission: We are currently recruiting volunteer educators, also known as docents, they provide rewarding learning experiences for museum visitors of all ages through guided gallery visits. Founded in 1956, the * RISD Museum Associates are a dynamic group of volunteers who give their time and talents to support a range of museum initiatives through an annual spring fundraiser. * K-12 and college students can explore museum work through internships, student groups, and other programs, described above. The museum is committed to compensating all students involved in the museum through these programs.

Support RISD Museum …by simply joining, giving, and voluntreering here: