Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

As a VENUE: Host your event…

The Gardner Museum has been the scene of elegant entertaining since 1903. Today, we continue this tradition by offering access to one of Boston’s cultural treasures as the place to host private events large and small. The Gardner features a variety of unique spaces that allow you to customize your event to suit your needs. The historic Palace offers exclusive opportunities for guests to enjoy private cocktail receptions around the ever-blooming Courtyard. Spaces within the contemporary New Wing, designed by Renzo Piano, can be used for speaking programs, conferences, seated dinners, and receptions. Holiday parties, board meetings, conferences, client dinners, rehearsal dinners and more are all executed to the highest standard in a venue that pairs the best of the old world with the new. We look forward to working with you to create your special event. Three distinctive spaces are available:

• Cloisters Around the Garden: The Cloisters, which ring the flower-filled enclosed courtyard, is the Museum’s signature location for receptions large or small. Gallery access and guided tours can also be arranged to complement your event.
  • Capacity: Reception – 200 guests

• Café G: Café G has floor-to-ceiling glass walls, bluestone floors, and a contemporary aesthetic with bright pops of color. Paired with the adjoining Terrace (in fair weather only), this space is the perfect location for a reception, seated dinner, or strolling dinner.
  • Capacity: Reception – 150 guests / Seated Dinner – 90 guests / Strolling Dinner – 150 guests

• Calderwood Hall – Speaking Program: Calderwood Hall is the perfect location for presentations, awards ceremonies, conferences, lectures, or concerts as part of your event. Calderwood is located directly above Café G, so guests can flow easily from one space to the other.
  • Capacity: Theater Style – 296 guests / Stage Level Only – 120 guests / Theater Style with Screen Visibility – 180 guests

• Calderwood Hall – Seated Dinners: Transform your event in a space unlike any other in Boston. Décor and design possibilities are endless in this sonic cube with world-class acoustics.
  • Capacity: Seated Dinner – 90 guests

Supplemental Event Spaces: Explore the collection floor-by-floor. Enhance your guests’ experience by adding access to these spaces:

Support the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum… by simply booking your next special occasion here:

https://www.gardnermuseum.org/organization/event-rentals

As a SHOP: Discover unique gifts…

Gift at the Gardner carries books, gifts, and memorabilia inspired by Isabella Stewart Gardner and her famous Museum. Your purchase from Gift at the Gardner supports the Museum in its mission, including preserving and bringing to life the historic collection; supporting contemporary artists, landscape architects, and musicians; and engaging local and global audiences. Five destinctive Themed Shops include:

THE COURTYARD: Throughout the year, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum’s always-blooming Courtyard is transformed through a series of nine dramatic seasonal displays, reflecting Isabella’s passion for gardens and the skill and dedication of the Museum’s horticulture staff. From orchids and nasturtiums to Japanese-style chrysanthemums, there’s always something new to discover thanks to the changing seasons and the rotation of plants. Gift at the Gardner’s Courtyard collection honors Mrs. Gardner’s love of florals and the hard work of the Museum’s horticulture department. Browse custom Gardner Museum products inspired by the Courtyard, from accessories and jewelry to sweets and gardening gifts.

BLUE ROOM: The Blue Room is a gallery brimming with objects that reflect Gardner’s personal relationships. In the early days of the Museum, the Blue Room welcomed concertgoers, serving as the ladies’ reception area. It displays the work of artists in Gardner’s closest circle of friends. With its low ceilings, fabric-covered walls, and well-lit alcoves showcasing paintings, furniture, books, and cases, the Blue Room invites visitors to explore the collection at close range and in an intimate space. Browse gifts inspired by the Blueroom, including books, stationery, and accessories.

GOTHIC ROOM: The Gothic Room was closed to the public during Isabella Stewart Gardner’s lifetime. With a mixture of devotional and domestic objects, it served as a private refuge for Isabella and a few very close friends. A far cry from the Italian palazzo–like aesthetic she employed in the Raphael Room or Titian Room, here she turned to another style near to her heart: the Gothic. England and its many Gothic cathedrals, painstakingly recorded in her travel albums, provided the idea for this space. Our Gothic Room selection includes gifts that pay homage to the art found in this gallery, including John Singer Sargent’s portrait of Isabella Stewart Gardner.

SPANISH CLOISTER: Framed by a rhythmic procession of colorful tiles, ancient sarcophagi, and architectural fragments, the Spanish Cloister reaches its crescendo in one of the Gardner Museum’s most iconic and enchanting paintings: John Singer Sargent’s El Jaleo. This work, often the first painting encountered by visitors, dramatically sets the stage for a walk through the Gardner, boldly proclaiming that this will not be a regular museum experience. Rather, a veritable feast for the senses is in store. From home decor to accessories, our collection of gifts features John Singer Sargent’s El Jaleo.

LITTLE SALON: The fanciful space known as the Little Salon epitomizes the internationalism of the Rococo, uniting French paintings, Italian furnishings, and German sculpture. Figures of cupids dance on frames, and vines twist their way through door frames and around paintings. Lavish floor-to-ceiling tapestries featuring scenes of pleasure gardens and stately châteaux fill the walls like windows onto a fairy tale. Smaller-scale objects and cases contribute to the intimacy of this space. Reminiscent of the aesthetic and details found in the Little Salon, our curated collection inspired by this gallery blends the contemporary and the traditional.

GIFT AT THE GARDNER: In keeping with the Museum’s mission to nurture a new generation of talent in the arts and humanities, and to deliver the works of creators and performers to the public, Gift at the Gardner presents a selective assortment of distinct products that inspire, inform, and celebrate beauty, art, craftsmanship, and the five programming cornerstones of the Museum: historic art, contemporary art, education, landscape, and music.

CUSTOM PRINTS BOUTIQUE: Create your own reproduction of works from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum with size, finish, & framing options to suit your space.

SANTA MARIA NOVELLA: Started in 1221 by Dominican friars who cultivated medicinal herbs, Santa Maria Novella uses the same traditions and scientific precision to create their products today.

GIFTS INSPIRED BY ISABELLA & HER CIRCLE: * For The Artist * For The Bibliophile * For The Historian * For The Musician * For The Pet Parent, and * For The Traveller.

NOTE: All merchandise in general is catalogued within these collections: * Print Shop * Museum Made * Collect & Curate * Entertain * In the Dressing Room * Pen & Paper, and * Books.

Support the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum… by simply purchasing your specialty merchandise here:

https://gift.gardnermuseum.org/

As an EATERY: Food for thought…

Café G – Be sure to stop by the beautiful glass-enclosed Renzo Piano-designed Café G and enjoy the views of the gardens. Come in for a full lunch or a light bite any day, Wednesday through Monday.  The menu at the Café features dishes utilizing seasonal, local, and organic ingredients. The Café also offers beer and wine, soft drinks, and desserts.

Support the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum… by simply dining here:

https://www.gardnermuseum.org/visit/cafe

Be a DONOR: Show that you care…

Your contribution to the Gardner Museum will have a vital impact on the Museum’s programming, helping us support emerging and established musicians and artists, create new and innovative exhibitions, buy art supplies to inspire young learners, provide free admission days for families, and so much more.

Membership

Help us to continue Isabella Stewart Gardner’s promise to make her Museum a place for “the education and enjoyment of the public forever” by becoming a member today. As a member, you’ll join a community of fellow art lovers and unlock year-round access to the Gardner through free admission, exhibitions, programs, and so much more. Gift memberships are encouraged. Membership at specified levels are offered: * Under 30 * Individual * Dual/Household * Sustainer * Supporter * Contributor * Courtyard Circle, and * Friends of Fenway Court.

Donation

Give to the Annual Fund:  Help us create an unmatched experience of art and beauty for visitors of all ages. Your 100% tax-deductible contribution to the Gardner Museum’s Annual Fund will have a vital impact on the Museum’s programming, helping us support emerging and established musicians and artists, create new and innovative exhibitions, buy art supplies to inspire young learners, provide free admission days for families, and so much more.

• Donations in any amount are welcomed. To double or triple your impact, ask if your employer will match your contribution to the Gardner Museum. Memorial and tribute gifts are also encouraged.
• Patron Program: Become a Friends of Fenway Court Patron. The Friends of Fenway Court Patron Program is a dynamic group of supporters who share Isabella Gardner’s imaginative spirit and commitment to the arts, while providing vital annual support for the Museum’s mission.
• Corporate Partnership:  The Gardner Museum offers a variety of opportunities for companies to partner with the Museum to meet marketing, philanthropic, and community engagement goals; provide employee benefits; and provide a unique venue for events.
• Annual Fund: Your 100% tax-deductible contribution to the Annual Fund helps keep the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum thriving for the education and enjoyment of the public. Your generosity enables us to care for our unparalleled collection; create innovative exhibitions and dynamic programming; support emerging and established musicians and artists; bring educational programs to Boston school children; and much more. Your gift today will make such a difference—thank you!
• Planned Giving:  Isabella Stewart Gardner devoted her adult life to creating the Museum that bears her name. In her will, she left the Museum in trust “for the education and enjoyment of the public forever” and bequeathed $1.2 million to establish an endowment for its future care and support. For more than a century, the generosity of like-minded people has preserved the unparalleled collection she assembled and enabled the Museum to continue to flourish as a vibrant and dynamic cultural resource. We invite you to become a part of this legacy – as you create your own legacy – by including the Gardner in your estate plans to help ensure the vitality of the Museum for future generations. Planned gifts provide important long-term support for the Museum and its programs while, in many cases, reducing your tax liability.  There are many ways to make a meaningful gift, either during your lifetime or through your estate plans.  Some of the most common vehicles include: bequests, charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, life insurance policies, IRAs or other retirement plans, and gifts of real estate. We would welcome a conversation about how these or other options could benefit both you and the Gardner.
  • The Phoenix Society: The Phoenix Society was created to honor individuals who have included the Gardner Museum in their estate plans. If you have already named the Gardner in your will or other estate plans, please let us know so that we can thank you and welcome you to the Phoenix Society.
• Organizational Memberships: Organizational memberships allow universities, libraries, and nonprofit institutions to provide their employees, students, faculty, and community with free or discounted admission to the Museum as well as other benefits.
  • University Membership: Explore benefits for students, faculty, & staff.
  • Museum Pass Program: Library patrons get special access to the Gardner.
  • Corporate Sponsorship: Offering employees and clients access to the Museum.

Support the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum …by simply joining, giving, and volunteering here:

https://www.gardnermuseum.org/join-give