By Rosemary Frank

The Museum of Art and Archaeology (MA&A) is back home. Ten years after its move to Mizzou North, the museum has returned to campus and its new location in Ellis Library. 

Founded in 1957, MA&A took residence in Pickard Hall in 1976. When the historic building closed in 2013, MA&A moved its galleries to Mizzou North where it reopened in spring 2015. With the closure of Mizzou North in July 2021, museum staff packed up more than 16,000 objects and moved them to Ellis Library’s ground floor space, an area that once housed the Missouri State Historical Society. 

Back on campus, museum staff are carefully unpacking and organizing the art and antiquities into new collections storage areas. Meanwhile, former classrooms and conference rooms are being converted into galleries, new lighting and flooring is being installed, and an entrance is being created between the library and museum.  

Several new staff members joined the MA&A team this past year, including the curator of European and American Art, registrar and collections manager, deputy director, and director. A museum educator will be hired later this summer.  

After renovations are complete, museum staff will install permanent and temporary exhibitions, transforming the area into a welcoming space where students, educators, and the community can discover art and artifacts firsthand. The museum is expected to open to the public in late 2023.