Philadelphia is proud to be the home of the nation’s first art school and museum of fine arts.<\/p>\n
Founded in 1805, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) has lived many lives \u2014 surviving fires, moving buildings and adapting to a changing art world. 2026 marks 220 years for the institution, and the people behind the easel say their work is far from done.<\/p>\n
“We are probably one of the only schools left that still do this,” Al Gury, professor of painting and drawing at PAFA, said.<\/p>\n
For more than 20 years, Gury’s worked at PAFA. Using one of the antique casts as a guide, Gury is working out of the famed Cast Hall, a place that houses an impressive collection, including a model of Michelangelo’s “David.”<\/p>\n
“There’s something about this place that is almost has a spiritual feel to it,” Gury said. “And we’re very, very proud of that.”<\/p>\n
More importantly, PAFA is a place that’s molded countless great American artists, Gury stresses.<\/p>\n
“We’ve been doing it for 220 years,” Gury said, “and we’re still pumping.”<\/p>\n
PAFA can claim several other “firsts” too.<\/p>\n
One of those firsts, an artist named Robert Douglas Jr., came along in 1834, said Hoang Tran, Director of Archives, Library and Collections at PAFA. <\/p>\n
“We believe from our research over the years, he was the first African American artist to exhibit at a professional museum,” Tran said.<\/p>\n
Pointing at another photograph, Tran added, “The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts allowed women \u2014 or permitted women, female students \u2014 to work from what we call antique, which is a historical cast collection, starting in 1844.”<\/p>\n
In 1876, PAFA moved to where it stands today on North Broad Street.<\/p>\n
“We’re in the front entrance, coming up the grand staircase,” Ed Poletti, Special Project Manager, said. “Our second floor is all our gallery spaces.”<\/p>\n
Last year, Poletti showed CBS News Philadelphia the facelift happening inside the Historic Landmark Building.<\/p>\n
“Our project renovation right now involves replacing all our HVAC equipment, heating ventilation, air conditioning,” Poletti said.<\/p>\n
The multi-million-dollar project is outfitting the famed Frank Furness-designed building for the next generation.<\/p>\n
“It’ll look 100% better. The lighting will be better,” Poletti said. “I think they’ll be really impressed with the place.”<\/p>\n
Just this week, our cameras were allowed back in to show off the completed work, days before reopening to the public.<\/p>\n
While the gallery space might look different, the passion and legacy remain.<\/p>\n
As Gury notes, PAFA is building towards its future.<\/p>\n
“We somehow found a way to balance the legacies, the traditions, the really beneficial, solid earlier forms,” Gury said, “and wed them to what’s going on in the world now.”<\/p>\n
The Historic Landmark Building<\/a> reopens to the public on Saturday, April 12.<\/p>\n