THE CHARLES M. BAIR FAMILY ART MUSEUM
Art Museum Completed in 2012
Expands the Bair Family Experience
When visitors enter Charles M. Bair Family Art Museum through the glass door portico
they are greeted by a grand foyer with tall dramatic interior walls and stone tile
floors. The spacious lobby invites the viewer to further exploration. The modern
climate-controlled, fire-resistant structure is elegant yet functional, designed
to showcase and preserve the priceless art, photographs and Native American pieces
collected by the Bair family. The museum also features a separate gallery for changing
exhibitions of work that complements the collection. In 2011 the gallery featured
the Floral Paintings of Joseph Henry Sharp. In 2012 exhibits will include Drawings
by Edgar S. Paxson from the Collection of Virginia Lee Speck through July 15th and
Paintings by Gordon McConnell from July 20-October 31st.
The project’s principal architect, Kim Olsen of O2 Architects in Billings, said
the exterior of the $3.1million museum is designed to blend with existing structures
on the property, while the interior is a contemporary space, thoughtfully created
to exhibit the numerous collections of art gathered by family members who had unique
and diverse interests and tastes.