KIMBELL ANNOUNCES 2027 EXHIBITIONS
Treasures of the Pharaohs from the Egyptian Museums in Cairo and Luxor, and Gainsborough Masterpieces
September 28, 2026
FORT WORTH, TX— The Kimbell Art Museum today announced two special exhibitions for 2027: Treasures of the Pharaohs in the spring, followed by Thomas Gainsborough opening in the fall. The Kimbell will be one of only two museums in North America to display 130 carefully selected artifacts from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and the Luxor Museum, offering rare insights into the daily life, social structures, religious practices, and legacies of the Egyptian pharaohs. Then, Thomas Gainsborough will receive an exhibition befitting his legacy on the 300th anniversary of his birth – the first major survey of his work in more than two decades.
“From Egypt’s ‘Golden City’ in the fourteenth century BC to the ‘golden age’ of British portraiture in the eighteenth century AD, the Kimbell’s 2027 exhibitions will continue the museum’s tradition of giving its visitors once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to experience great works of art from throughout history,” said Eric M. Lee, the museum’s director.
Treasures of the Pharaohs
March 14–September 19, 2027
Through 130 artifacts from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and the Luxor Museum, this landmark exhibition offers rare insights into the daily life, social structures, religious practices, and legacies of the Egyptian pharaohs. Three thousand years of ancient Egyptian history are presented through an array of dazzling royal treasures: monumental granite sculptures, elegant gold jewelry, carved and painted stone stele, lavishly decorated sarcophagi, and other exquisite furnishings demonstrate the sophistication of Egyptian craftsmanship and belief systems. And newly discovered artifacts from King Amenhotep III’s workers’ community within the “Golden City” in the Valley of the Kings provide a glimpse into the lives of artisans and laborers often absent from presentations of Egyptian art history.
The exhibition curator is Dr. Tarek el-Awady, former director of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. It is organized by the Kimbell Art Museum, the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of the Arab Republic of Egypt, and the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA), in collaboration with ALES SpA, the in-house company of the Italian Ministry of Culture, and MondoMostre. It is accompanied by a major scholarly catalogue by Egyptian archaeologist Dr. Zahi Hawass.
Thomas Gainsborough
November 14, 2027–March 19, 2028
Celebrating the leading figure of the glamorous, “golden age” of British portraiture on the 300th anniversary of his birth, Thomas Gainsborough brings together some 120 paintings, drawings, and prints for the first major survey of his work in more than two decades. The exhibition explores the seeming tension in the artist’s career between, on the one hand, his enormous success as a society portraitist, and, on the other, his personal passion for innovative landscape painting, as well as experimental drawing and printmaking. The artist will be brought vividly to life through an emphasis on his family, and his ardent love of music and theater.
This exhibition is organized by the Kimbell Art Museum in association with Tate Britain.
SUPPORT
Promotional support for the Kimbell Art Museum and its exhibitions is provided by American Airlines, NBC 5, and Fort Worth Report. Additional support is provided by Arts Fort Worth.
VISITOR INFORMATION
Admission to the museum’s permanent collection is always free. Admission to special exhibitions is half-price all day on Tuesdays and after 5 p.m. on Fridays.
The Kimbell Art Museum is open Tuesday through Thursday and Saturday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.; Friday, noon–8 p.m.; and Sunday, noon–5 p.m.; last exhibition entry 30 minutes before closing. It is closed Monday, New Year’s Day, Juneteenth, July 4, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. For general information, call 817-332-8451.
ABOUT THE KIMBELL ART MUSEUM
The Kimbell Art Museum, owned and operated by the Kimbell Art Foundation, is internationally renowned for both its collections and its architecture. The Kimbell’s collections range in period from antiquity to the twentieth century and include European paintings and sculptures by artists such as Michelangelo, Caravaggio, Artemisia Gentileschi, Bernini, Velázquez, Gainsborough, Monet, Cézanne, Picasso, and Matisse, as well as important examples of Egyptian and classical antiquities. Also included are significant works of Asian art from China, Japan, the Himalayas, and South and Southeast Asia; notable African sculptures primarily from West and Central Africa; and a wide range of ancient American art representing cultures across Mexico and Central and South America.
The museum’s 1972 building, designed by the American architect Louis I. Kahn, is widely regarded as one of the outstanding architectural achievements of the modern era. A second building, designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano, opened in 2013 and now provides space for special exhibitions, dedicated classrooms, and a 289-seat auditorium with excellent acoustics for music. For more information, visit kimbellart.org.
IMAGES