The mission of the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery is to serve as an important teaching instrument and visual resource in the education of Scripps women. The main purpose of the Gallery is to acquire, preserve, catalogue, research, and exhibit works of art in Scripps College’s collection. The Gallery makes use of this collection, and, occasionally, works loaned from other institutions, to present exhibitions that enhance the Scripps curriculum in the arts and humanities.

GALLERY HISTORY

Art exhibitions have long been an integral part of the art program at Scripps. In the late 1930s, Millard Sheets, the head of the art department, began a program of art exhibitions in Lang Art Gallery, including the Ceramic Annual exhibition, which has become the longest running exhibition of contemporary ceramics in the United States.

In 1993, a new Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery opened, designed by architects Anshen and Allen, at 11th and Columbia streets. The gallery continues to present a rich array of historical and contemporary, Asian, European, and American art. Four exhibitions annually include changing shows, as well as the “Ceramic Annual” and “Senior Exhibition,” which appear each spring.