May 16–September 7, 2026

This exhibition marks the centennial of The San Diego Museum of Art, celebrating a select few of the many thousands of important works of art added to the collection in its recent history.

Since the Museum first opened its doors to the public in 1926 as the Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego, it has become home to significant holdings of old masters as well as Modern and contemporary art. More recently, the Museum has made great strides to augment its core collections of art from East Asia, South Asia, the Islamic world, Europe, the United States, and Latin America. In many cases this has led to commissions of works by contemporary artists, bridging the historic with the art of our times. The merger with the Museum of Photographic Arts in 2023 greatly enhanced the collection of photography.

As the Museum currently embarks on an important endeavor to expand the building’s west wing, doubling its display space with an extension designed by Foster + Partners, other gifts have entered the collection, including the formidable Impressionist, Post-Impressionist and Modern collection of Toni Bloomberg. Today The San Diego Museum of Art’s collection boasts over 32,000 works of art. The astounding quality of the additions to the collection, especially in its recent history, are testament not only to the Museum’s directorial and curatorial vision, but moreover to the many generous individuals who have gifted art to share with this city and its many diverse communities. It is a collection created by and for the people of San Diego and is shared internationally through publications, loans to other museums, and with touring exhibitions worldwide.

Featured at top right: John Singer Sargent, John Alfred Parsons Millet (detail), 1892. Oil on canvas. Museum purchase with funds from The Jack Thomas Family Charitable Fund in memory of Patricia B. Thomas; Toni Bloomberg; Gene and Taffin Ray; Sheryl and Harvey White; and Mrs. John Burnham, by exchange, 2017.261.