Dreamlike visions, mythical creatures, and a bit of spooky fun are about to take over the Museum of Fine Arts. With the arrival of a major William Blake exhibition and a packed calendar, even seasoned museumgoers might find themselves stunned, delighted, or just a little creeped out.
Into Blake’s Psychedelic World
If you’ve ever wanted to step inside the wild mind of English Romantic painter and poet William Blake, now’s your chance. The museum’s newest blockbuster invites visitors to plunge into Blake’s vision-haunted landscapes and explore the era’s visual art and literature. Expect your imagination to be shaken by tableaux full of fiery angels, mythic beasts, and uncanny symbolism.
Special guided tours—sometimes spiced up by invited authors, visual artists, and aesthetes—offer a glimpse of how Blake’s “mad genius” continues to resonate. Slow tours pause at his most enigmatic works, letting you soak in surreal 18th-century energy, sample his poetry, and construct your own interpretation. If you want to dig deeper, join workshops revealing Blake’s artistic methods or explore his uncanny fusion of Romantic poetry and Gothic horror during “Romantic Nightmares”—a double treat for fans of the bizarre.
Hands-On History—Literally!
For those who want to do more than just look, the “Hands On!” program opens the vaults of the ancient world—literally. Since 2010, this Egyptology experience has let curious visitors hold artifacts thousands of years old in their own hands. Trained volunteer guides bring the story of each object to life in the Egyptian Secrets Chamber, making mummies, statues, and amulets suddenly tangible.
For something completely different, kids and adults can dive into craft workshops and creative sessions during school breaks. You can mold clay like an ancient Athenian potter, debate which jobs from the past still exist today, and navigate the maze of Greek and Egyptian mythology at art-filled family events.
Venetian Nobles and Crooked Hats
Ever wondered who really ran Venice, and why its leaders tossed their rings into the sea? Find out during “Venice’s Lords and Ladies,” where attendees investigate the city’s influential rulers, their baggy trousers, quirky hats, and elaborate ceremonies. The “Queen of the Adriatic” will never look the same again. Even the city’s legendary artist-princes—who immortalized all the finery—get their due.
Ancient Families and Afterlife Style
Families ruled ancient Egypt—both the ordinary and the divine. At “Divine Families,” you’ll trace the tangled drama of legendary gods, family feuds spanning generations, and ask whether ancient Egyptians faced the same everyday problems we do. Other events follow the country’s famous embalmers: their secrets, social standing, and preservation experiments. Curious why mummification was key to rebirth in the afterlife? Or how coffin “fashion” evolved over millennia, with woodwork and decoration styles constantly shifting? The museum’s “Coffin Trends” tour unveils burial practices across the ages, introduces mysterious mummies in the collection, and deciphers what made a top-tier afterlife kit.
Animals, Myths, and Museum Hideaways
Not all events are grim. Monthly “Hello, Fine Arts!” sessions put your favorite animals in the spotlight, while the “Zoo of Myths” explores hybrid beasts from three-headed dogs to sun-eating snakes and why Egyptian gods wore animal heads. As the autumn wind howls, “Autumn Nook” events invite you to seek cozy corners, both real and imaginary, finding secret museum spaces where you can daydream away from the chill.
Fitness, Fun, and Spooky Nights
Yoga sessions with actress Adél Jordán combine art, movement, and relaxation in sublime museum halls. Creative types can join the “Immersion Workshop,” a new creative writing and visual experience led by writer Rita Halász and museum educator Judit Cser, reimagining how we interact with artworks and spaces.
On Halloween, the museum really lets loose. “Night at the Fine Arts” features thought-provoking, spine-chilling tours centered on saints, martyrs, and the “memento mori” theme—why skulls glare out from paintings and how grief and remembrance intertwine in art. The focus is on mystic, goosebump-inducing details, led by resident art historians. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, the night promises plenty of haunted ambiance.
More for Families, Educators, and the Curious
There’s family day led by the powerful goddesses Isis and Hestia, art sessions about the social life of Greek vases, and free “slow museum” events for teachers blending recreation and pedagogy. English-language tours showcase Renaissance and Baroque masterpieces, exploring artists’ inspirations and legacies. And if you want to get under the skin of ancient Egypt, the “Scarab-Case Files” series covers juicy topics like lotus-blossom love and sexuality.
From myth to mummification, poetic nightmares to hands-on relics, this season at the Museum of Fine Arts is more surreal, more immersive, and—at times—a little stranger than ever.
