For the third straight year, attendance at the Springfield Art Museum is up. Since last July, 63,379 people visited the museum on E. Brookside Drive. That’s 2,809 more visitors than the same period the year before and 4,803 more than the period before that.
Museum spokesman, Joshua Best, credits several things for the continued increase in visitors.
"I think a lot of it has to do with the strength of our outreach programs," he said. "We're working with a lot more partners than just the Springfield Public School system to bring in tours to the museum. Our exhibition schedule is also really excellent. We're bringing in a range of kind of national touring shows with our own produced exhibits, so I think it's really offering a wide range of experiences to the public."
And he said they’re marketing the museum more now. According to Best, more people are realizing they don’t necessarily have to travel outside of Springfield to have great art experiences.
Museum director, Nick Nelson, said "these attendance figures demonstrate consistent, day-to-day use of the museum as a valuable educational resource...we are proud that our visitors are making real connections with our collection, in addition to all the exciting traveling exhibitions and community events happening at the museum."
He hopes that once projects included in the museum’s master plan are complete in the years ahead, even more people will visit the museum. The timeline for completion of the plan is contingent upon funding, according to museum officials.
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