Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive - Berkeley, California Huge Repository of Creative Masterworks

Serving as the visual arts center of the University of California, Berkeley, the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive engages audiences not only from the local campus, but also from the surrounding communities and beyond. Its simple, straightforward mission is "to inspire the imagination and ignite critical dialogue through art and film.''

To accomplish this, the BAM/PFA manages two separate facilities. Its distinctive modernist building on the south campus opened in 1970 and has amassed a collection of art objects that now numbers over 16,000 pieces, making it one of the largest university art museums in the United States. Across the street, the Pacific Film Archive Theater opened a year later and houses more than 14,000 films and videos. Both facilities are actively engaged in educational pursuits, offering opportunities for intellectual exploration, artistic innovation, and social commentary.

The Berkeley Art Museum is noted for its core holding of fifty paintings by the Abstract Expressionist painter and teacher Hans Hofmann. It also includes significant works by Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, Helen Frankenthaler, David Smith, Ad Reinhardt, and Clyfford Still, to name a few major artists.

The art collection is particularly strong in terms of Ming and Qing dynasty Chinese paintings. There are Mughal dynasty Indian miniatures, Baroque artworks, and old master prints, too, along with early American paintings, 19th century photographs, excellent examples of conceptual art, and works of international contemporary art.

The Pacific Film Archive Theater offers between 450 and 600 annual screenings, providing cinema buffs with a place to discover and explore the film art of countries around the world. Besides movies and videos, the archive has its own library of books, periodicals, posters, and still photographs. There are also some 95,000 files of documentation on individual films, personalities, and subjects - a massive resource for film research and education.

Apart from its academic facilities, BAM/PFA also operates a retail store selling books, catalogs, posters, art reproductions, and stationery. It has a dining facility, too-Caf, Muse-which offers a highly acclaimed raw food menu, using organic, sustainable, and locally grown produce to create such healthy dishes as Raw Vegetable Lasagna with Portobello Mushrooms and Raw Vegetable Sushi with Wasabi and Red Miso Dipping Sauce. Located at the Durant Street entrance to the museum, the caf, is open for lunch daily from 11am to 3pm.

Each Friday evening, Caf, Muse opens again at 6pm to host a popular weekly event called "L@TE.'' As the art galleries stay open till 9pm or later, tunes are spun by DJs at the caf, while beer and wine are sold, giving the weekend a rollicking kick-off.

Admission to Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive exhibits and events is free or deeply discounted for BAM/PFA members, UC Berkeley students, faculty and staff. For example, film showings that cost adults in the general public $9 per ticket go for just $5.50, and the $3-per-day library use fee for visitors is waived. However, everyone can enjoy free admission to the art exhibitions and public programs on the first Thursday of the month.

The Berkeley Art Museum is located at 2626 Bancroft Way and the Pacific Film Archive Theater is at 2575 Bancroft Way, between Telegraph and College Avenues. The BAM/PFA office address is 2625 Durant Avenue #2250, Berkeley, California 94720-2250. Both BART and the AC Transit buses serve the UC Berkeley campus. By car from Interstate 80, take the University Avenue Exit and go east on University to Oxford Street. Turn right on Oxford and then left on Durant Street to College Avenue. Go left on College and then left onto Bancroft Way. Several public parking lots are available in the vicinity.