San José Museum of Art

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Leave a lasting impact on SJMA today!

A female artist stands in front of her painting among her art supplies. Next to the photo is the San José Museum of Art logo. To the right of the logo are two stacked images: one of Hung Liu’s self portrait and below that a photograph of Chitra Ganesh smiling with her hands clasped. Finally there is a detail of mesh and wire orbs of varying shapes and sizes by artist Ruth Asawa.


Dear Friends,

Imagine a place where every stroke of paint, contour of sculpture, and new media work of art tells the story of creativity in our present day. A place that not only showcases stunning works of art but also fosters community and learning. The San José Museum of Art is all of that and more: it is free to youth, students, and teachers, a place where friends meet, inspiration abounds and spirits lift—and home to a growing art collection that now, as we celebrate our 55th anniversary, is about to be accessible to the public in unprecedented ways.

SJMA was founded by visionary artists and citizens to create an art museum for everyone in the heart of downtown San José. Beginning in March 2025, SJMA will dedicate the entire main floor of Gibson and Plaza galleries to the long-term display of selections from the permanent collection, now consisting of over 2700 works of art. With a focus on gender parity, cultural diversity, and artistic innovation, Tending and Dreaming: Stories from the Collection will position artists as storytellers and their artworks as stories, imagining the Museum as a space where culture and meaning are always in process.

Could you give to the Campaign for Collection to have your name publicly recognized as a supporter of the new permanent collection galleries in the SJMA lobby?

With the galleries of Tending and Dreaming: Stories from the Collection, SJMA’s artworks on long-term view will serve as the bedrock of our award-winning K-12 arts education programs and enrich the students we serve in the classrooms and in our galleries. You will see your favorite collection artists including Ruth Asawa, Hung Liu, and Louise Nevelson, joined by recent acquisitions of major artworks by Tishan Hsu, Yolanda López, and Sarah Sze, to name a few. Structured into six thematic groupings, Tending and Dreaming offers poetic starting points for engaging with ideas woven through the Museum’s robust collection—and you can create your own narratives. One of our founders, Ann Marie Mix, made a generous donation to support our permanent collection galleries, won’t you join her?

Your gift will foster a place where art lives, breathes, and inspires every day. Make a gift today and ensure SJMA’s enduring place at the heart of art, culture, and community.

Your gift now will join a legacy of donors generously giving to make a permanent collection of the best works of art by Bay Area and global artists available to the public. Your gift to this Campaign for Collection will assure you of your invitation to participate in the new collection galleries’ opening festivities.

Thank you for being part of this exciting journey. Together, we can create a place where every visit leaves a lasting impression, and where every child, adult, and student can find themselves in the stories told by the artists of our time.

Warm regards, 

S. Sayre Batton
Executive Director Emerita (2017–2025)

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Image Credits

Yolanda López, Tableau Vivant, (detail) 1978. Twelve color photographs, 14 x 9 1/4 inches each. Collection of San José Museum of Art. Museum purchase with funds provided by the Acquisitions Committee and the Lipman Acquisitions Fund, 2023.11a-l. © 1978 Yolanda López Legacy Trust. Courtesy of San José Museum of Art. Photo by Susan Mogul.

Hung Liu, Resident Alien, 1988. Oil on canvas, 60 x 90 inches. Collection of San José Museum of Art. Gift of the Lipman Family Foundation, 2005.32. © Estate of Hung Liu / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Chitra Ganesh. Photo by Drew Altizer Photography.

LLAA docent Lotte Van de Walle. Video still.

Ruth Asawa, Detail of Untitled (S.113, Hanging Five-Lobed, Multilayered Continuous Form within a Form with Spheres in the First and Third Lobes), ca. 1958. Copper and brass wire, 90 x 16 1/2 x 16 1/2 inches. Collection of the San José Museum of Art. Gift of the artist in honor of the San Jose Museum of Art's 35th anniversary, 2003.28.01; Untitled (S.113, Hanging Five-Lobed, Multilayered Continuous Form within a Form with Spheres in the First and Third Lobes), ca. 1958. Copper and brass wire, 90 x 16 1/2 x 16 1/2 inches. Collection of the San José Museum of Art. Gift of the artist in honor of the San Jose Museum of Art's 35th anniversary, 2003.28.02; Untitled (Untitled (S.035, Hanging Six-Lobed, Multilayered Interlocking Continuous Form within a Form with Spheres in the Second, Fifth, and Sixth Lobes), ca. 1962. Copper and brass wire, 88 x 15 1/2 x 15 1/2 inches. Collection of the San José Museum of Art. Gift of the artist in honor of the San Jose Museum of Art's 35th anniversary, 2003.28.03; Untitled (S.036, Hanging Seven-Lobed, Multilayered Interlocking, Continuous Form within a Form, with Spheres in the First, Sixth, and Seventh Lobes), ca. 1959. Oxidized copper and brass wire, 137 1/2 x 17 x 17 inches. Collection of the San José Museum of Art. Gift of the artist in honor of the San Jose Museum of Art's 35th anniversary, 2003.28.04. © Estate of Ruth Asawa / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Photo by Johnna Arnold.