Telfair Museum of Art

We went to the Telfair for the first time recently for the Monet exhibit. I was impressed that Savannah had a gallery of this quality.

We had a terrific tour given by Drew, who gave us the history of the family, architect and the building.
In addition to the beautiful period rooms, there is a wonderful art gallery with works by George Bellows and many other 19^th-​century artists
Great museum! Must see!

Wonderful docent for 15 guests, beautiful museum, café food quality better than average, café food delivery slow, no wait staff for table service, going back, bought membership

Staff was pleasant, museum was clean however I do not consider anything in there art I doubt any artist and using that term loosely in there has ever taken a class
We love museums and antiquing and art but this was a waist.
We have done all the Savannah touristy things but should have passed on this. Please don’t waist your time. I wish I had read reviews prior to paying for 4 adults to enter. Not trying to be rude but waist of Time money and energy

Lovely museum with an emphasis on American art in a natural setting. The history and original use of the space is fascinating, and the staff is incredibly courteous and knowledgeable. Fantastic way to get out of the heat (or rain) for a quiet afternoon.

I wouldn’t give this place 3 stars, but 4 seems like too much. If you do the three Telefair property ticket, you can visit all three spaces for about $ 20 which I think is a good deal.
The facility was pretty, but I wish there were tours, audio guides or pamphlets explaining the exhibits better. Without much context on the exhibits it was a bit boring. The lady working the front desk also seemed disinterested, which also seemed to be the case at the Owens– Thomas House with our tour guide. I wonder why this seems to be a trend with Telefair?

It’s true that Telfair is rather small and that certain folks would probably consider it a stretch to describe it as an art gallery/​museum, but it still houses a fairly nice collection of artwork by some both famous and lesser-​known artists, as well as some local names familiar to the Savannah art scene.
Clearly, no one would confuse it with MOMA, but its intimacy and quirkiness in no way should be considered a detraction from what it is– a great little «must see» stop on anyone’s list who is coming to Savannah for the first time, as well as a «local flavor» highlight for long-​time denizens of this beautiful, historic city. I think Telfair is a «bucket list» kind of place, somewhere you should visit at least once and check off the «list» even though it’s not the Eiffel Tower or Buckingham Palace.
Admission is by no means free and the price has risen a bit over the years, but I don’t think that the cost is so exorbitant to complain about in the way that some people do. Look at how much money people throw away on things like cigarettes and lotto tickets. There are far more expensive luxuries in life than admission to Telfair. Hit up one of the huge museums in NYC, Boston or Chicago and then see what I mean.
The first time that I saw the famous «Bird Girl Statue» (popularized by the publication of «Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil») of Savannah was right here in the Telfair. I loved it.

This review is for the Telfair itself as the Jepson Center bores me somewhat and the Owens Thomas House is my all time favorite of all tours and old historic architectural homes. Telfair MOA has interesting art in the upstairs area. And downstairs they have had amazing art like the Tiffany Lamps or the early era Sterling Silver collection (many thanks Dr. Pete??). Oh, as well, if you are a Chatham County resident, you get in free on Sundays and maybe Saturdays. Check first as we are in the state of Chatham and things change quick. Also, if you like people watching, this place is a vortex for oddity. The stories I could tell…