On a recent trip to the Berkshires and the small town of Williamstown, MA, a friend suggested checking out the The Clark Art Institute.  Since we were not familiar with the town, and wanted something relaxing to do before our daughter had a scheduled performance, it sounded like a good fit.

Williamstown is very small, and we used Google Maps to find the museum, but there were plenty of signs as well.

There is a large parking lot, and the museum is situated on a lot of open land.

We headed to the main lobby where we purchased our tickets.  Our hometown library offers free museum passes, so it is worth checking into as far as saving on admission prices. We paid $20 for a general adult admission, as under 21 was free. There are also some promotional months in early 2023 for free admission.

As soon as we entered the building, we were impressed with the design and space. The main building is a lovely white marble building. There is plenty of room to wander, and the design is beautiful.

There are plenty of nice bathrooms, and a cafe that offers drinks and snacks.

There is a large area to sit and enjoy your food. There was plenty of seating (beyond this picture).

We checked out the smaller lower level, which was a new special exhibit of 18th Century French Drawings.

I enjoyed these drawings, from architectural plans to renderings of daily life from the 18th century. 

Afterwards, we moved upstairs to the other exhibits, including Impressionist paintings, European art, sculptures, and more.

There were lots of spots to sit and relax, and reflect.

We started off in the American art exhibit. This is Winslow Homer’s “Eastern Point”, painted in 1900.

One of my favorite rooms here is the Impressionist paintings.  The room has a pastel blue translucent roof, and an amazing ambiance.  With statues in the middle and paintings around the room, they were perfectly illuminated and I enjoyed the presentation.

It was neat to see such famous art pieces, such as this one. Claude Monet, The Cliffs at Étretat, 1885.

There were so many exhibits to explore, and we did not have enough time to spend there, from statues to silver pieces. I would love to return and take my time checking out the rest of the artwork.

We also did not have a chance to explore outdoors, since we were on a time constraint and also because it was bitter cold outside. I would love to return and explore the rolling hills, trails, woods, fields, farm pastures, and pond.  There is also a reflecting pool there that adds to the beautiful landscape.

There is a nice gift shop at The Clark as well.

This was a lovely experience and it would be nice to return, take another look at the art, and see what new exhibitions there are, as well as explore the outdoors there as well.

Visit the Clark online at https://www.clarkart.edu/

Check out other day trips from Albany, NY.

Marysa

About the Author: Marysa

Busy blogger and mom of two girls. We love traveling and the great outdoors, and are always looking for our next adventure!