During the course of its 200-year history, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts has mounted more than 1,000 exhibitions. Special Exhibitions constitute a separate series from the two Annual Exhibition series, or the Peale House and Morris Gallery series. (Lists of the latter exhibitions are available from the Academy Archives.)
Special exhibitions were either thematic, or devoted to a single artist or group of artists. The titles on this list are derived from surviving catalogues, checklists, invitations, and from the annual reports. In addition to title and dates, a note has been included concerning the type of printed documentation that accompanied the exhibition. When a catalogue or checklist was issued, an invitation ticket or promotional card was almost always produced as well. When no printed matter was produced, a note as to the source of information has been provided.
Certain types of exhibitions are not included in this list: The Academy's Annual Exhibitions, 1811-1969; Fellowship Annuals (the Academy's first alumni organization) held at the Academy from 1940 to 1969; the Philadelphia Water Color Club members-only annuals held from 1955 to 1967; work done at the Chester Springs summer campus from 1917 to 1952; Annual Student Exhibitions (in May of each year, held as early as 1902, but advertised and treated like public exhibitions beginning about 1976); and the School Gallery at 1301 Cherry Street, 1988 - 2006.
Selections from the permanent collection have almost always been on display. Exhibitions devoted exclusively to some part of the collection are listed here, primarily after 1940, when the subject or format warranted a special title and/or a catalogue, e.g., thematic displays, works by a single artist, or new acquisitions.
Special exhibition printed matter has been microfilmed by the Archives of American Art through 1939. This list of titles supercedes the one on the microfilm. For more information on special exhibitions (or other series) see the Guide to the Archives of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Due to its length, the list below has been divided into sections, with a narrative introduction for each.
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