The San Antonio Museum of Art (SAMA), situated in the former Lone Star Brewery, takes visitors on a global journey through 5,000 years of art, culture, and history. Renowned for hosting the most comprehensive collection of ancient Greek, Roman, and Egyptian art in the southern United States, SAMA also features extensive Latin American, Asian, and contemporary art collections. SAMA, established in 1981 after a significant renovation of the brewery, evolved from the San Antonio Museum Association's Witte Memorial Museum, originally founded in 1926. Over the years, SAMA has expanded, acquiring collections such as the Latin American Folk Art from former Vice President Nelson A. Rockefeller and Robert K. Winn, the Ancient Mediterranean art collection from Trustee Gilbert M. Denman Jr., and an impressive collection of Asian art, largely consisting of Chinese ceramics. Accredited by the American Association of Museums, SAMA now has a nearly 100-strong staff and offers an array of programs including guided tours, lectures, concerts, films, children's workshops, and special exhibitions, serving over 20,000 students annually. Its mission remains to collect, preserve, exhibit, and interpret significant works of art, representing a broad range of history and world cultures, to enhance the shared understanding of humanity.
