Where Creativity Lives: The Masur Museum of Art
Monroe’s most known cultural landmark, Masur Museum of Art, welcomes artists, and lovers of art to experience events, collections, exhibitions and educational resources during every season. When guests drop-in, they’ll run into art and educational curators and a gallery assistant to help make their visit to the museum memorable. The Masur Museum of Art is known as the largest contemporary art museum in northeast Louisiana, emphasizing artists from Louisiana and the greater southeast, national and international territories.
While the museum shows temporary exhibitions year-round, it holds permanent collection numbers, reaching approximately 500 works of art. Those works include masterpieces by regional artists, minor works by known artists on a broader scale and series or bodies of work commissioned from individual artists. Visitors will discover that these categories relate to artistic and historic trends in the American South and other parts of the country.
The 63rd Annual Juried Competition is an exhibition currently on view through May 2, 2026, at the museum. The competition showcases contemporary artists throughout the United States of America working in any medium. It started in 1964, and it’s the longest-running tradition and one of the museum’s best-reviewed exhibition of the year.
This year’s juror features Benjamin Hickey, Executive Director for the Center for Exploratory and Perceptual Arts in Buffalo, New York. Ben previously served as the Curator of Exhibitions and Collections at Masur. His most recent writing can be found in a published monograph by the Art League Houston called Beili Liu: Mend, in celebration of Liu’s 2024 Texas Artist of the Year Award. Back in 2023, he received a Samuel H. Kress Foundation Travel Grant that allowed him to co-present research related to Marais Press on-campus collaborations at the 51st Annual Art Libraries Society of North America in Mexico City. In the earlier days of his career, he presented Reshaping Our Programming: The Artist in Residence Program at the New York Historical Society in conjunction with an Association of Art Museum Curators annual conference. More of his services in the arts scene include being a panelist or consultant for Villa Albertine, the Joan Mitchell Center, Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, Photo NOLA, and the San Antonio Art League.
Winners of the 63rd Annual Juried Competition include:
Best in the Show – Qais AI-Sindy, “The Last Turn”
Second Place – Larry Sheffield, “The New Golden Age”
Third Place - Maria Teresa Gil Lucientes, “Achromatic Triptych”
Honorable Mentions of the 63rd Annual Juried Competition include:
Sharon Havelka, “Senescence”
David Gary Lloyd, “The Hunter’s Son”
Debra Roberson, “Growth”
Peter Sandback, “Museum of Natural History No. 23”
Carol Bivins, “Going Against the Grain”
Katarina Russel, “Handle With Care”
The full accepted list consists of artists from different states such as California, Utah, Illinois, Washington, Colorado and more. In Louisiana, the list includes Monroe-West Monroe’s own Brooke Foy, Pat Cene Howard, Bette Kauffman and Clifford Tresner.
The 17th Annual Off the Wall (OTW) fundraiser at the Masur Museum of Art, coming up on April 24, 2026, supports overall exhibitions and educational programs. OTW is the area’s premiere art function, featuring a selection of more than 100 works of art by artists in the local community and around the country. It’s not only a fundraiser, but it’s a party! The event includes an expanded bar and food from local restaurants, live music by Heavy Drunk and Watermelon Slim, and an opening act by Cade Bordelon and The Fallbacks.
The museum is open for groups and schools to schedule tours who are planning meetings and vacations in Monroe-West Monroe. Guided group tours are available for children ages 5+ and/or adults and must be scheduled at least two weeks in advance. The museum offers cost guided group tours upon request – charging $3 per child in the group for tour and art activity.
Organizers can find more information here to plan visits.
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Masur Museum of Art
1400 S. Grand Street
Monroe, LA 71202
(318) 329-2237
Website
Masur Museum of Art1400 S. Grand Street
Monroe, LA 71202