Gallery Spaces

Vaulted Gallery 

The Vaulted Gallery, located at the entrance to the Mary Helen Cochran Library, hosts exhibits by contemporary artists from Virginia and beyond, such as Austin “Auz” Miles in 2023 and Stephanie Serpick in 2022, as well as the Studio Art Faculty Exhibition with Laura Pharis, Claire Stankus, Shawn O’Connor, Medford Taylor, and Lou Haney in 2023. The Vaulted Gallery contains six display bays measuring 86 inches each.

Benedict Gallery

Benedict Gallery, located in the lobby of Benedict Hall, shows artists at distinct stages of their careers, from high school awardees, studio art seniors, emeritus faculty & alumnae artists, and invited contemporary artists such as Amy Chan in 2023 and Mahsa R. Fard in 2022. Benedict Gallery is a 58 foot, curved midcentury space.

Pannell Gallery 

Pannell Gallery is in the Anne Gary Pannell Center and opens on to the Upper Quad and presents the annual contemporary artist commission (Nadd Harvin in 2025, Susie Ganch in 2024, Valaria Tatera in 2022, Uzo Njoku in 2022, Hope Rovelto in 2021, and Xia Zhang in 2019), as well as collection exhibitions. The gallery is the largest on campus and has 140 feet of exhibition space, as well as high ceilings with an inner, doric colonnade for the lighting track & installation fixtures.

The Anne Gary Pannell Center is home to the Arts Management certificate and Art History program. The building also houses the extensive art collection and the interior was renovated in 1984 to include climate-controlled display and storage facilities appropriate to the scope and quality of the Sweet Briar art collection.

Pannell Gallery was formerly the refectory (dining hall), and is one of the four original campus buildings designed by the firm of Cram Goodhue & Ferguson in 1906. Reflecting the architect’s characteristic historicism, the exterior design is a rare collegiate example of Ralph Adam Cram’s Georgian Revival style. More than a century after its construction, the building’s facade continues to provide a focal point for the College’s quadrangle, serving as a backdrop for activities such as commencement ceremonies and the student tradition of step-singing. In 1995, the College’s original core buildings, including Pannell, were named to the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places.

For more information about the building and the campus’s distinctive architecture, see Dreams and Reality: Sweet Briar College and Ralph Adams Cram written by Aileen H. Laing.

 

GALLERY	ACADEMIC YEAR HOURS	LOCATION
Vaulted Gallery	Monday-Friday 9:00 A.M. - 9:00 P.M.	Mary Helen Cochran Library
Benedict Gallery	Monday-Friday 9:00 A.M. - 9:00 P.M.	Benedict Hall
Pannell Gallery	ThuRSday, Friday & Saturday 12:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.	Anne Gary Pannell Center

In addition to these hours, the galleries may be open during some evenings and weekends for special events and College programs as announced.

Please be aware that the galleries are closed to visitors for during all College exam periods and vacations, including during the summer, unless otherwise noted.