The Autry Museum of the American West is a museum in Los Angeles, California, dedicated to exploring an inclusive history of the American West. Founded in 1988, the museum presents a wide range of exhibitions and public programs, including lectures, film, theater, festivals, family events, and music, and performs scholarship, research, and educational outreach. It has two sites and attracts about 150,000 visitors annually.In 2013, it extensively redesigned and renovated the Irene Helen Jones Parks Gallery of Art and the Gamble Firearms Gallery in its main building. In its related opening exhibit for the Parks Gallery, Art of the West, the new organization enabled material to be presented in relation to themes rather than chronology, and paintings were shown next to crafts, photography, video and other elements in new relationships.LocationsThe Autry Museum of the American West has two sites, about apart: Griffith Park 4700 Western Heritage Way, Los Angeles, California, 90027Mt. Washington, 234 Museum Drive, Los Angeles, California, 90065 (Southwest Museum of the American Indian building and ethnobotanical garden, open on Saturdays, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.)ElementsThe Autry was established in 1988 by actor and businessman Gene Autry as "Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum" to explore and share the comprehensive story of the American West and its multiple cultures and interpret its significance. Its Griffith Park collection includes 21,000 paintings, sculptures, costumes, textiles, firearms, tools, toys, musical instruments, and other objects. The museum presents contemporary and historical exhibitions, year-round programs for children, intellectual forums, and the Native Voices at the Autry performing arts series. The museum is located in Griffith Park across from the Los Angeles Zoo.
