Castellani Art Museum

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Castellani Art Museum, opened in 1978, sits at 5795 Lewiston Road on Niagara University’s campus in Lewiston, New York. Its collection began in 1976 when Armand J. Castellani started it to promote art and cultural understanding. Originally called the Buscaglia-Castellani Art Gallery and located off campus, it moved on campus and was renamed in 1990.

The building, designed by Thomas Moscati, has seven gallery spaces, indoor and outdoor sculpture courts, a museum shop, and spaces for offices, storage, and education. The museum supports Niagara University’s Fine Arts Program with studio and classroom space and offers docent and volunteer programs.

Niagara University also offers an art degree program developed with former museum staff. In 2016, the museum hosted a Folk Arts exhibition exploring beadwork by Haudenosaunee, Wabanaki, and Chippewa artists. The permanent collection contains more than 5,700 works, including paintings, prints, photographs, drawings, and sculptures from the 19th century to today. Much of the collection was donated by Armand and Eleanor Castellani, who have also donated works to other local museums.