Wichita has a diverse mix of museums, all with impressive collections and an ever-changing schedule of exhibitions. From showcasing new acquisitions or curating themed exhibits from their own collections to hosting special exhibitions traveling the country, there’s always something new to see at museums in the Heart of the Country.
Here’s a look at the latest exhibitions among museums in Wichita.
Exploration Place
Exploration Place is open daily.
Jan. 23-May 3, 2026: "Illusions" – Get ready to question everything you see at "Illusions," a mind-bending traveling exhibit now open at Exploration Place. This immersive experience plays with perception through shifting shapes, warped rooms and interactive displays that challenge how your brain interprets the world around you. Perfect for curious kids, playful adults and anyone who loves a good “wait… how did that just happen?” moment, "Illusions" invites visitors to step inside optical tricks, snap unforgettable photos and discover why seeing isn’t always believing.
Ongoing: “Kansas: An Immersive Dome Experience” – Don’t miss this 25-minute dome movie produced by the Exploration Place team in partnership with local drone videographers. Filmed completely by drone, consider this a love letter to Kansas showcasing the beauty and wonder of the Sunflower State in a way never seen before. It shows daily in the Digital Dome Theater, along with “Caves: The Hidden Frontier," "The Stellars" and "Sea Otters: A Wild Family Adventure."
Coming soon: "Finding Titanic: The Secret Mission" - May 22-Sept. 7; "Scooby-Doo Mansion Mayhem" - Oct. 2-Jan. 10; "Curious George" - Oct. 2-Jan. 3
Check the center’s website for screening times and tickets; attending a dome show does not require a museum admission ticket.
Wichita-Sedgwick Co. Historical Museum
The Wichita-Sedgwick Co. Historical Museum is open Tuesday through Sunday and offers free general admission from 1 to 5 p.m. every Sunday in 2026.
Ongoing
Through May 22, 2026: "Service Beyond Barriers: Bravery & Sacrifice in the Face of Adversity – An Exhibit by WSU Museum Studies Students" – Students from the Museum Exhibition class at Wichita State University, under the direction of Holmes Museum of Anthropology Director and Instructor, Rachelle Meinecke, have created an exhibit project entitled Service Beyond Barriers: Bravery and Sacrifice in the Face of Adversity. This exhibit is a collaboration between The Kansas African American Museum, the Mid-American All Indian Museum, and the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum. It explores the powerful and often overlooked stories of minority men and women who have served in the military. In this exhibit, they focus primarily on African Americans, Native Americans, and women. In the spirit of America’s 250th birthday, this exhibit is a reflection on patriotism, sacrifice, and the meaning of service in America. This exhibit honors those who defended a nation that did not always defend them and recognizes their essential role in shaping both military history and the broader American story.
Through 2026: “Being Modern” – This exhibition follows (and is directly patterned after) the museum’s previous exhibit, “Art Deco on the Plains.” It takes the timeline forward to explore modern design experienced locally in the 1950s and 1960s. It is a feature of the Lois Kay Walls Local Visual Art History Series.
Through 2026: "Why History Museums Collect Art" – Art is not only for art museums. If a picture is worth a thousand words, it stands to reason that art can tell us a lot about the times and place where it was produced. Local history museums exist to explore time and place. Featuring works from C.A. Seward, John Noble, Edmund Davison, Birger Sandzen, Bruce McGrew, and more.
Envision Arts Gallery and Community Engagement Center
Admission is free at the Envision Arts Gallery.
On view March 7 - May 30, 2026:
- "The Future is Fashion: The First Annual Fashionable Art and Runway Show" – Explore the world of Fashion through the lens of individuals who navigate the art of design with a dizzying array of tactile, mixed media materials. From 2D collage designs to the creation of unique, one of kind hand-embellished wearables, experience the sights, sounds and the smells of what it means to be fashionable through all of our senses. Delight in the glitz and glamour of the 2025 collection with the first annual Envision Fashion Show featuring models from our PRIDE program, youth and teens and Envision Arts Adult program in both Wichita and Dallas.
On view March 7 - May 28, 2026:
- "Blooming in Darkness" – Blooming in Darkness is a unique art exhibit that explores the profound journey of how we have experienced vision loss, yet continue to create breathtaking art. This exhibit delves into our resilience and ingenuity, demonstrating that creativity knows no bounds and can thrive even amidst challenges. Vision loss can be an overwhelming experience, altering how individuals perceive the world. However, for us, it represents not an end but a transformative beginning. This exhibit highlights how we have adapted our techniques and perspectives, crafting art that speaks of our journey and unique vision.
On view April 4-25, 2026:
- "Heartspring" – A group exhibition in the Patricia A. Peer Window Gallery featuring participants from Heartspring, which serves children and young adults with multiple intellectual and developmental needs, such as living with autism; challenges with speech, language, or communication; challenges with mobility and other motor functions; a limited ability to regulate emotions during times of stress; and other pediatric healthcare complexities.
On view May 2-30, 2026:
- "Creations by Jenny" – Jenny Ewertz is a ceramic artist and a proud member of Envision Arts since March 2023. Her work explores the tactile possibilities of clay, creating unique ceramics that celebrate the beauty of imperfection. Jenny’s process is a delicate balance between control and spontaneity, allowing each piece to evolve organically while still reflecting her artistic vision. Constantly learning and experimenting, Jenny thrives in an environment of creativity and collaboration. Envision Arts has become her creative home, where the exchange of diverse perspectives and ideas fuels her artistic growth. Through this community, she continues to discover new artistic fields and push the boundaries of her craft.
On view June 6-Aug. 29, 2026:
- "Braille Institute of America, Los Angeles and Anaheim, CA" – Featuring the works of artists who are blind or visually impaired from the Los Angeles and Anaheim Braille Institutes.
On view June 6-27, 2026:
- "4th Annual Youth Arts Exhibition" – A group exhibition in the Patricia A. Peer Window Gallery featuring participants from the Cathy G Hudson Early Child Development Center (ECDC) and After School Art Club.
Mid-America All-Indian Museum
Mid-America All-Indian Museum (MAAIM) is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
Ongoing
March 7-June 6, 2026: “Ripple in Traditions” – A traveling art exhibition featuring BIPOC women and two-spirit artists who interpret how traditions evolve over time. Curated by Carly Treece, Rae Riggs, and Brittany Bendabout of Four Mothers Collective, Ripple in Traditions explores generational stories and cultural practices. It was first presented at Positive Space Tulsa in November 2024, and included diverse mediums like film, paintings, digital art, ceramics, and jewelry.
"Home” – An exhibit of items from the museum’s permanent collection that remind us of home; dedicated to those who were forcibly removed from their homes.
"Southwest Pottery” – This exhibit showcases two dozen pieces of Southwest Pottery from the Indian Museum's collection and is made possible by David and Christina Simmonds, who donated beautiful black on black pieces by Maria Martinez (San Ildefonso Pueblo).
A piece from "Upside Down, Topsy-Turvy, and In-Between: Images of the Carnival and Circus from the Wichita Art Museum."
Wichita Art Museum
The Wichita Art Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday. Admission to WAM is free all year to everyone. Only special exhibitions will have a ticket price and those will be noted here.
Ongoing:
Through May 31, 2026: “Framed in Friendship: American Women Artists and Their Networks” – Featuring paintings of women by women, this exhibit celebrates the relationships between women artists in the 19th and 20th centuries—bonds of professionalism, friendship, family and romance.
Through June 14, 2026: Safer Waters: "Picturing Black Recreation at Midcentury" – The museum is excited to welcome the works of artist Stephen Towns to Wichita for a remarkable new exhibition, Safer Waters: Picturing Black Recreation at Midcentury. Towns’ paintings and handcrafted quilts—seven of which were newly created for this exhibition—will transport viewers to sunny Paradise Park, a central Florida lake resort for Black people that flourished at midcentury.
Through March 21, 2027: “Seeing America: Regionalism and American Scene Painting From The Swope Art Museum” – In the 1930s and 1940s, many United States artists turned their back on European modern art trends and instead turned their attention to American life. Rather than painting abstract nudes or Parisian city scenes, artists looked to their own country’s downtowns and farm fields to create accessible images that would appeal directly to the American people. Whether celebrating or critiquing the country, these artists painting “the American scene” all wanted to make art grown from the nation’s grassroots—not just a second-rate imitation of European art.
Through Oct. 23, 2027: “Confluence” – The museum installed a new, site-specific commission by sculptor John Douglas Powers. “Confluence” brings the magic of the tallgrass prairie to the WAM galleries. Comprised of 700 vertical rods swaying rhythmically like prairie grasses in the wind, the exhibit is a mesmerizing kinetic sculpture. Video projections of awe-inspiring Flint Hills skyscapes complete the installation.
Mark Arts
Mark Arts galleries are open and free to explore Tuesday through Saturday.
In the Gladys and Karl T. Wiedemann Gallery:
- School of Creativity Salon: April 3 - May 16, 2026
- Land That I Love: May 29 - July 18, 2026
- 2025 Versus Winners: Elisabeth Owens & John Pirtle: July 31 - Sept. 19, 2026
- National Watercolor Exhibition: Oct. 2 - Dec. 12, 2026
In the School of Creativity Gallery:
- Congressional Art Awards: April 10 - May 2, 2026
- Versus Competitor Showcase: May 15 - June 27, 2026
In the Youth Gallery:
- Washington Elementary School: April 10 - May 16, 2026
Ulrich Museum
The galleries at the Ulrich Museum of Art offer free admission.
Through May 30, 2026: “Anne Samat: Avatars” – For Malaysian artist Anne Samat (born 1973), expressing one’s inner truth without fear is a vital act of existence. Her elaborate, totem-like sculptures reflect this philosophy, brought to life through detailed weaving and carefully chosen materials. Each piece serves as a symbolic extension of her identity, imbued with rich symbolism to create intimate narratives and new personal mythologies. Samat sees her practice as preservation, employing traditional techniques indigenous to Malaysia, called Songket, which originated in Kuala Lumpur, and Pua Kumbu, with origins in Sarawak, East Malaysia. By combining indigenous practices with mundane, mass-produced objects of today, such as tools, toys, dishware, and plastic trinkets, Samat’s sculptures transcend time, intersect history and modernization, and reflect both cultural memory and personal evolution.
Through June 3, 2026: “With, Not For: Centering Community, Connection, and Identity” – If you have been at the Ulrich in the past two years, you might have participated in our curatorial experiment, the Ulrich Co-Lab. The four exhibitions that took place at Grafly Gallery aimed to interact with you! The final phase of the Ulrich Co-Lab brings together the voices, choices, feelings, and reflections of hundreds of visitors who engaged with this evolving venture. With, Not For: Centering Community, Connection, and Identity is both a culmination and a beginning—a collective portrait of what happens when museums become spaces of listening, co-creation, and care. During the past two years, our community selected different artworks from our collection, shared their thoughts and ideas, and, together with our team, reimagined the role of the museum itself. Visitors connected pieces to Wichita neighborhoods and surrounding areas, wrote wall labels, voted on their favorite pieces made by local artists, and shared their personal stories and objects. With, Not For includes highlights from each Ulrich Co-Lab phase, transforming our museum into a space where academia meets lived experience.
Through June 13, 2026: “SYMBOLS OF GREATNESS: Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History” – The Faculty Exhibition, formerly the Faculty Biennial, stands as one of the most esteemed traditions at Wichita State University, and the longest-running exhibition series at the Ulrich Museum of Art. This exhibition highlights the diverse and innovative creative practices of the School of Art, Design and Creative Industries (ADCI) faculty, offering a unique opportunity to experience the cutting-edge research and artistic endeavors shaping the future of the arts. The 2026 iteration brings together an exciting range of work across disciplines, featuring ceramics, drawing, graphic design, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and art history. Titled after a recent executive order that demands public art and institutions reflect only sanitized narratives of American exceptionalism, this exhibition asserts that greatness lies in the radical act of truth-telling. The featured artists wield their works as tools to restore not just sanity to history, but humanity, contextualized in this exhibition as alternative monuments to memory, vulnerability, analysis, and vision.
Through July 25, 2026: “In Place | Taiomah Rutledge: Origins/Evolutions” – Wichita artists strengthen and enrich our community across all branches of the arts. They inspire, entertain, challenge, and advance knowledge of the world around us, its diverse histories, and its possibilities for the future. Beginning in 2026, the Ulrich will introduce In Place, a series featuring solo exhibitions by Wichita-based artists that will reflect their unique experiences and celebrate the breadth of styles, points of view, and creative processes represented within the Wichita arts community. In Place demonstrates the Ulrich’s commitment to expanding human experience through encounters with the art of our time by platforming artists who live, create, and innovate right here in the Wichita area, our shared place. The first in this series, Taiomah Rutledge: Origins/Evolutions, is an exhibition of new works by Wichita-based multidisciplinary artist Rutledge, a member of the Ojibwe, Meskwaki and Dakota nations and cofounder of Warclan Collective. Through a bold fusion of mixed media, abstraction, and symbolic figuration, Rutledge weaves deeply personal narratives that explore identity, generational memory, and the reclamation of cultural space. Rutledge’s work challenges static representations of First Nation identities and perspectives, instead offering dynamic, evolving forms that assert presence, vitality, and transformation. Origins/Evolutions marks a powerful continuation of Rutledge’s role as both artist and cultural advocate.
Visit these pages to discover more about Wichita area museums and galleries. If you’re looking for other things to do in Wichita, check out our calendar of events and download the latest visitor guide for more inspiration.
