Jepson Center & Telfair Children's Art Museum » Telfair Museums » Savannah, GA
Source: https://www.telfair.org/visit/jepson-center
Archived: 2026-04-23 15:32
Jepson Center & Telfair Children's Art Museum » Telfair Museums » Savannah, GA
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Jepson Center & Telfair Children's Art Museum
207 W. York St.
Savannah, GA 31401
Telfair Academy
121 Barnard St.
Savannah, GA 31401
Owens-Thomas House & Slave Quarters
124 Abercorn St.
Savannah, GA 31401
Parking Info
Upcoming Events
More Events
Search
Art
History
Architecture
Get Tickets
Plan Your Visit
Jepson Center & Telfair Children's Art Museum
Telfair Academy
Owens-Thomas House & Slave Quarters
Early drawing of the Jepson Center from the building's architect, Moshe Safdie
Jepson Center: History and Harmony
After a century of collecting, exhibiting, and educating Savannah and its visitors about art, history, and architecture, Telfair Museums’ Director and Board of Trustees identified the need for a new, larger facility. Their primary objectives were to increase the capacity for traveling exhibitions, continue an emphasis on education and community involvement, and increase archival storage for a growing collection. The museums’ Board of Directors envisioned a building representative of its time but also open, welcoming, and inviting. They also understood that, in a National Historic Landmark District, it would be challenging to express these ideals in architecture.
Five internationally recognized architectural firms presented their ideas to the trustees in 1998. The trustees unanimously chose Moshe Safdie and Associates. Safdie offered an outstanding international track record of responsible, compelling designs in historic settings, and he excited them with his passion about the possibilities of the new project. Safdie also offered a clear and stimulating vision of a building that would harmonize with its surroundings and welcome the community.
What nobody envisioned was a two-year controversy surrounding the proposed project as the design team made its case before Savannah’s Historic Review Board. Only the passion and dedication of countless individuals enabled the grand vision for the Jepson Center to endure, providing Savannah with a truly iconic structure that, in the words of Safdie, is “vital, contemporary, appropriate to the expression of art to come … and a building you cannot conceive of anywhere else but Savannah.”
Now On View
Off the Coast of Paradise: Artists and Ossabaw Island, 1961–Now
March 13
–
to
September 6, 2026
Jepson Center
Off the Coast of Paradise: Artists and Ossabaw Island, 1961–Now
will be the first major exhibition to explore the profound impact of an undeveloped, 26,000-acre barrier island off the coast of Savannah, Georgia, on artists working in the United States. The exhibition will focus on the Ossabaw Island Project (OIP) and Genesis—a pair of revolutionary multidisciplinary residency programs that ran on the island from 1961–1982—and their legacies in its examination of Ossabaw as a site for creative experimentation.
Learn More
Exhibitions
In Reflection: Contemporary Art and Ourselves
April 25, 2025
–
to
April 26, 2026
Jepson Center
In Reflection: Contemporary Art and Ourselves
is a long-term evolving installation of Telfair Museums' modern and contemporary collection featuring paintings, prints, drawings, photographs, sculptures, textiles, and mixed and time-based media from 1945 to the present day.
Learn More
Heroes and Hosts
June 13, 2025
–
to
April 26, 2026
Jepson Center
The tenth annual Boxed In/Break Out is a collaboration between Savannah-based artists Lisa D. Watson and Dana Richardson. Combining sculpture, painting, and text, the artists will transform each window into a theatrical narrative where fragile ecosystems take center stage. The scenes will invite viewers to step into an immersive experience that bridges the divide between human-made and wild spaces.
Learn More
Venus of Ossabaw
March 13
–
to
June 21, 2026
Jepson Center
Venus of Ossabaw is a new short film commissioned by Telfair Museums for Off the Coast of Paradise: Artists and Ossabaw Island, 1961–Now. On view during museum hours in the exhibition gallery, Telfair Museums offers a special public viewing of the film every evening through June 21.
Learn More
Bojana Ginn: Biometric Sublime
January 23
–
to
July 5, 2026
Jepson Center
Telfair Museums presents a solo exhibition by artist Bojana Ginn in conjunction with the 19th edition of the museum’s PULSE Art + Technology Festival. Ginn states that her works “operate between science and spirituality, where algorithms translate intimacy into wonder.” Her new interactive installation entitled
Biometric Sublime
transforms the rhythms of the human body into a living ecosystem of art.
Learn More
Telfair Children’s Art Museum –
The World of William O. Golding
Telfair celebrates a new exhibition in its immersive Children’s Art Museum that focuses on the fantastic art of Savannah artist and sailor William O. Golding (1874-1943). A host of new interactive experiences will lead children and adults through the remarkable story of this artist whose seafaring adventures of 49 years inspired his distinctive maritime drawings. New exhibits by FREN Inc. bring Golding’s pencil and crayon drawings to life in animations that visitors of all ages may control and interact with.
Learn More
View image 1 in lightbox:
Photography provided by Adam Kuehl
View image 2 in lightbox:
View image 3 in lightbox:
View image 4 in lightbox:
Photo courtesy of Adam Kuehl Photography.
#art912
#art912 is an initiative dedicated to raising the visibility and promoting the vitality of artists living and working in Savannah through exhibition opportunities, public programs, and outreach.
Exhibition Opportunities
Boxed In/Break Out
Artists are invited to submit proposals for a public art installation in the windows of the Jepson Center that face Barnard Street.
#art912 on Social Media
Telfair Museums encourages anyone who is making art, looking at art, or talking about art in Savannah to use
#art912
on any social media platform to talk about art or artists in Savannah.
Upcoming #art912 Events
#art912 Boxed In/Break Out Artist Talk with Joanna Paige Silver
June 4 at 6pm
–
7pm
Jepson Center
Join us for a conversation between artist Joanna Paige Silver and curator Erin Dunn to learn more about Silver's Boxed In/Break Out installation Welcome to the Dollhouse!
Learn More
Become a Member
Visit
Get Tickets
Hours & Admission
Our Three Museums
Urban Café
Group Tours
School Tours
Girl Scout Tours
Directions & Parking
Free Family Days
Accessibility & Policies
Exhibitions
CAM
Events
Events
Calendar
Telfair Ball
Explore
Explore All Blog Topics
Art
Arts in Savannah
Fine Arts
Decorative Arts
Art and Technology
Contemporary Artists
Collecting for the Museum
History
Owens-Thomas House Ownership and Architecture
Slavery in Savannah
Mary Telfair
Growth of Savannah
Architecture
Early Innovations
The Regency Style
Building for the City
Learn
Class Calendar
Youth Classes
Adult Classes
2026 Summer Camps
Telfair Art Clubs
Family Programs
Teen Arts Council
Resources
Join & Give
Become a Member
Donate & Sponsor
Director’s Circle
Corporate Partners
Volunteer Docent Program
Member Affinity Groups
Member Portal
Donated Memberships
Collections
About the Collection
Search the Collection
Rights & Reproductions
Research
Shop
About
Our Mission
History
Outreach & Community Impact
Staff
Board of Trustees
Annual Report
Event Rentals
Job Opportunities
Contact
Get Directions
View Upcoming Events
Search
Skip to main content
Jepson Center & Telfair Children's Art Museum
207 W. York St.
Savannah, GA 31401
Telfair Academy
121 Barnard St.
Savannah, GA 31401
Owens-Thomas House & Slave Quarters
124 Abercorn St.
Savannah, GA 31401
Parking Info
Upcoming Events
More Events
Search
Art
History
Architecture
Get Tickets
Plan Your Visit
Jepson Center & Telfair Children's Art Museum
Telfair Academy
Owens-Thomas House & Slave Quarters
Early drawing of the Jepson Center from the building's architect, Moshe Safdie
Jepson Center: History and Harmony
After a century of collecting, exhibiting, and educating Savannah and its visitors about art, history, and architecture, Telfair Museums’ Director and Board of Trustees identified the need for a new, larger facility. Their primary objectives were to increase the capacity for traveling exhibitions, continue an emphasis on education and community involvement, and increase archival storage for a growing collection. The museums’ Board of Directors envisioned a building representative of its time but also open, welcoming, and inviting. They also understood that, in a National Historic Landmark District, it would be challenging to express these ideals in architecture.
Five internationally recognized architectural firms presented their ideas to the trustees in 1998. The trustees unanimously chose Moshe Safdie and Associates. Safdie offered an outstanding international track record of responsible, compelling designs in historic settings, and he excited them with his passion about the possibilities of the new project. Safdie also offered a clear and stimulating vision of a building that would harmonize with its surroundings and welcome the community.
What nobody envisioned was a two-year controversy surrounding the proposed project as the design team made its case before Savannah’s Historic Review Board. Only the passion and dedication of countless individuals enabled the grand vision for the Jepson Center to endure, providing Savannah with a truly iconic structure that, in the words of Safdie, is “vital, contemporary, appropriate to the expression of art to come … and a building you cannot conceive of anywhere else but Savannah.”
Now On View
Off the Coast of Paradise: Artists and Ossabaw Island, 1961–Now
March 13
–
to
September 6, 2026
Jepson Center
Off the Coast of Paradise: Artists and Ossabaw Island, 1961–Now
will be the first major exhibition to explore the profound impact of an undeveloped, 26,000-acre barrier island off the coast of Savannah, Georgia, on artists working in the United States. The exhibition will focus on the Ossabaw Island Project (OIP) and Genesis—a pair of revolutionary multidisciplinary residency programs that ran on the island from 1961–1982—and their legacies in its examination of Ossabaw as a site for creative experimentation.
Learn More
Exhibitions
In Reflection: Contemporary Art and Ourselves
April 25, 2025
–
to
April 26, 2026
Jepson Center
In Reflection: Contemporary Art and Ourselves
is a long-term evolving installation of Telfair Museums' modern and contemporary collection featuring paintings, prints, drawings, photographs, sculptures, textiles, and mixed and time-based media from 1945 to the present day.
Learn More
Heroes and Hosts
June 13, 2025
–
to
April 26, 2026
Jepson Center
The tenth annual Boxed In/Break Out is a collaboration between Savannah-based artists Lisa D. Watson and Dana Richardson. Combining sculpture, painting, and text, the artists will transform each window into a theatrical narrative where fragile ecosystems take center stage. The scenes will invite viewers to step into an immersive experience that bridges the divide between human-made and wild spaces.
Learn More
Venus of Ossabaw
March 13
–
to
June 21, 2026
Jepson Center
Venus of Ossabaw is a new short film commissioned by Telfair Museums for Off the Coast of Paradise: Artists and Ossabaw Island, 1961–Now. On view during museum hours in the exhibition gallery, Telfair Museums offers a special public viewing of the film every evening through June 21.
Learn More
Bojana Ginn: Biometric Sublime
January 23
–
to
July 5, 2026
Jepson Center
Telfair Museums presents a solo exhibition by artist Bojana Ginn in conjunction with the 19th edition of the museum’s PULSE Art + Technology Festival. Ginn states that her works “operate between science and spirituality, where algorithms translate intimacy into wonder.” Her new interactive installation entitled
Biometric Sublime
transforms the rhythms of the human body into a living ecosystem of art.
Learn More
Telfair Children’s Art Museum –
The World of William O. Golding
Telfair celebrates a new exhibition in its immersive Children’s Art Museum that focuses on the fantastic art of Savannah artist and sailor William O. Golding (1874-1943). A host of new interactive experiences will lead children and adults through the remarkable story of this artist whose seafaring adventures of 49 years inspired his distinctive maritime drawings. New exhibits by FREN Inc. bring Golding’s pencil and crayon drawings to life in animations that visitors of all ages may control and interact with.
Learn More
View image 1 in lightbox:
Photography provided by Adam Kuehl
View image 2 in lightbox:
View image 3 in lightbox:
View image 4 in lightbox:
Photo courtesy of Adam Kuehl Photography.
#art912
#art912 is an initiative dedicated to raising the visibility and promoting the vitality of artists living and working in Savannah through exhibition opportunities, public programs, and outreach.
Exhibition Opportunities
Boxed In/Break Out
Artists are invited to submit proposals for a public art installation in the windows of the Jepson Center that face Barnard Street.
#art912 on Social Media
Telfair Museums encourages anyone who is making art, looking at art, or talking about art in Savannah to use
#art912
on any social media platform to talk about art or artists in Savannah.
Upcoming #art912 Events
#art912 Boxed In/Break Out Artist Talk with Joanna Paige Silver
June 4 at 6pm
–
7pm
Jepson Center
Join us for a conversation between artist Joanna Paige Silver and curator Erin Dunn to learn more about Silver's Boxed In/Break Out installation Welcome to the Dollhouse!
Learn More
Become a Member
Visit
Get Tickets
Hours & Admission
Our Three Museums
Urban Café
Group Tours
School Tours
Girl Scout Tours
Directions & Parking
Free Family Days
Accessibility & Policies
Exhibitions
CAM
Events
Events
Calendar
Telfair Ball
Explore
Explore All Blog Topics
Art
Arts in Savannah
Fine Arts
Decorative Arts
Art and Technology
Contemporary Artists
Collecting for the Museum
History
Owens-Thomas House Ownership and Architecture
Slavery in Savannah
Mary Telfair
Growth of Savannah
Architecture
Early Innovations
The Regency Style
Building for the City
Learn
Class Calendar
Youth Classes
Adult Classes
2026 Summer Camps
Telfair Art Clubs
Family Programs
Teen Arts Council
Resources
Join & Give
Become a Member
Donate & Sponsor
Director’s Circle
Corporate Partners
Volunteer Docent Program
Member Affinity Groups
Member Portal
Donated Memberships
Collections
About the Collection
Search the Collection
Rights & Reproductions
Research
Shop
About
Our Mission
History
Outreach & Community Impact
Staff
Board of Trustees
Annual Report
Event Rentals
Job Opportunities
Contact
Get Directions
View Upcoming Events
Search