Frist Art Museum
Nashville, United States
Frist Art Museum
The Frist Art Museum, formerly known as the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, is an art exhibition hall in Nashville, Tennessee, housed in the city's historic U.S. Post Office building, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The museum is housed in a white marble building that was built in the 1930s to serve as Nashville's main post office. Designed by Marr & Holman Architects, it was built in 1933-34 for $1.5 million. Its location near Union Station was convenient for mail distribution, since most mail at that time was moved by train.
Accommodations near Frist Art Museum
Holiday Inn Express Nashville-Downtown Conference Center, an IHG Hotel
see price.
Nearby Tours & Activities
Opening times
| Monday | 10:00 AM – 5:30 PM |
| Tuesday | 10:00 AM – 5:30 PM |
| Wednesday | 10:00 AM – 5:30 PM |
| Thursday | 10:00 AM – 9:00 PM |
| Friday | 10:00 AM – 9:00 PM |
| Saturday | 10:00 AM – 5:30 PM |
| Sunday | 1:00 – 5:30 PM |
Guests' reviews
Absolutely amazing museum with a ton of exhibits. The artifacts are wide ranging and the timeline is quite wide. There's something here that everyone will enjoy. I like the fun interactive exhibits as well. The modern/contemporary pieces were also fantastic. Best part is the admission is included in to the ticket for the country museum and hall of fame.
Definitely worth scheduling time to visit this arts centre, there is more to it than meets the eye. The interest starts with the building that is a converted mail sorting centre, and hence the architecture stands out, elegant, deliberate, and lavish in features, materials and execution e.g the special wood block flooring, amazing corridors and staircases, impressive doors and other features... look up go see... anyway it makes a perfect building to house art and expression of all forms and genres in their galleries, and this is what it does... be blown away the moment you go through the front entrance and enjoy... you need a good two / three hours if you want to take time and see everything. Aside the exhibitions which they change regularly, there is a strong connection to the community, and areas for community art and activities, which I found vibrant, fun, and nourishing to the soul.. You will enjoy what ever is on, and the gift shop is extensive and worth a browse... Go for it, enjoy!
Always a great time at the Frist. Relevant and fresh exhibits that are curated very well. The cafe is a great spot to stop in and the music nights that they have during the summer or just a good time. Everything about the Frist is just fantastic. A big fan of the opening night parties they throw for members as well, it's worth it to be a member.
I was totally impressed by this museum from the exterior architecture to the interior. It's a fabulous structure to admire, balance and symmetry throughout. The visiting exhibit was Nick Cage, and I found the exhibit to be visually stunning, like nothing I've ever seen before. They had a fun interpretive area that actually was very entertaining, even though it is designed for children. Expect to be here 2+/- hours. They also honor AAA discounts which was a nice addition.
Revolving exhibits. Mummies and rare vintage cars have been favorites. Nice gift shop. Cafe expensive but no bad. Beautiful building. Kids art room is the best. Kids free all the time.
Art museum downtown. The permanent exhibit is the Roman located downstairs. Nick Cave show upstairs on view til mid May was quite eclectic. The art deco design might have been my favorite part. It's a quick visit, can go through it in under an hour. Not the first place I'd visit but interesting nonetheless.
This is a small museum, which is why it's only $12 for an adult. It's a very cool building though with great exhibitions! They also have a gift shop and cafe. I went to see the Nick Cave exhibition and it was amazing! If you're traveling they will check your bags for no additional cost.
I enjoyed my walk around the exhibits. This museum is very small, but I feel it's priced accordingly. Very well laid out and beautiful works of art. I like that they rotate exhibits every 90 days.
Lovely place but seemed a short experience because there was just one exhibit. Would love to go back when there was more. Friendly staff and cute little cafe inside with an outside patio area. Check out the Flying Saucer pub right behind the museum on your way out though!! Super cool place! The Frist will validate some of the cost of parking if you are in the correct parking lot but be advised... The lot that is behind the Flying Saucer is pricey! We paid $15 to park and were in and out of both places in 2 hours or less.
My first visit was amazing! Priced well, clean, friendly and knowledgeable and friendly staff and security detail. The building itself should be an exhibit because of the attention to detail and flow of the floor plan. Great place to go.
We have been several times over 5 years and the family always enjoys the visit. The kids art center is the carrot I dangle to my kids (now 10 &12) so they will agree to visit. The art exhibits have never failed to draw them in and explore and enjoy before remembering that they came for the kids center. The renovated kid center still has their favorites (print making, stop motion video making, painting, and drawing stations). In addition they have added a changing color wall, color with your shadow, and several other new favorites. The Frist Center is still a Nashville must go!
What a great addition to the Nashville arts community!! This museum holds some treasures.. I’ve visited during many different events and exhibits and all of them have been satisfying and rewarding.. My children love visiting the interactive exhibits on the top floor.. They spend hours creating their own works of art.. And the artwork that they are exposed to through the larger exhibits is just amazing.. Memberships can be expensive if you’re not a student, but we always go with the family membership.. It offers us some good options and it gives us a constant source of entertainment and inspiration throughout the year.. If you haven’t stopped into the Frist yet, do yourself a favor and check it out!!
We visited on girl scout day this past Saturday. It had nice activities for the girl scouts to do to earn patches and a 'different' type of art than I am used to seeing. Not a large quantity of available art in my opinion. Overall our scouts enjoyed themselves. Parking is not bad for Nashville. Would return for another event.
exhibits are thought provoking & BEAUTIFUL. Martin Art Quest is a gift for all ages, a creative space for kids, parents, tourists & even professionals - see art & MAKE art. Love the Frist, especially music in the Cafe, as a performer and a patron it is a soul soothing experience!
I LOVED going to the Frist Art Museum today! I brought my six year old brother so we were in the Martin ArtQuest Gallery the entire two hours we were there. The gallery is extremely interactive and he didn’t express any boredom. My favorite part about the gallery was the station for exploring moving images. Another great thing about the Frist Art Museum is that they offer military ($7) and college student discounts ($9), every person 18 years of age and younger are FREE. Parking was not pricey either, $2 for the first hour and $1 for each additional hour.
Wow! what a great museum. Went here on a recommendation and was not disappointed! The Chaos and Awe exhibit was breathtaking. The photography show was nice but not my favourite. The civil rights show was also very interesting. A good size museum - you can expect to spend about 1 hour if you're quick. They even have a virtual reality piece that really plays with your mind. It is the artists version of a self portrait... and you certainly feel like you're inside the chaos of another person's mind! All in all a great museum. Especially since anybody staying at a Nashville hotel gets in for free (It is worth the fee though)
The Frist is lovely, and if you are a student they have free student nights! I went for the second time and they had all new art exhibitions which were really spectacular. The new MapQuest center was fun too and open to all ages, so I made my own little piece of art even though I initially thought I was a bit too old for it. The cafe is tasty but a bit overpriced as all museum restaurants tend to be--the lemon cake was really delicious though. Will be visiting very often!
