What to Expect at the Henry Art Gallery
The Henry Art Gallery is a museum for contemporary art and ideas on the University of Washington campus in Seattle. Washington State’s first art museum, it opened in 1927 as the state’s first public art museum, with 172 works gifted to the university by Seattle civic and business leader Horace C. Henry. Its collection now holds nearly 30,000 objects.
Visitors enter from the plaza, near the intersection of 15th Avenue NE and NE 41st Street. Inside, you can use the elevator to reach all three museum levels, including the auditorium and restrooms.
Wheelchairs are available free at the front desk. Seating is provided in the café, Sculpture Court, and throughout the museum; lightweight foldable chairs for use in the galleries are available on request.
The Henry offers several supports for different access needs. All restrooms are fully accessible, with two all-gender restrooms on the Mezzanine Level and gendered restrooms on the Upper Level.
Task-trained service animals are welcome, but pets are not. Touch kits are available for most exhibitions, and the museum provides large-text exhibition texts and object labels, magnifiers through its touch kits, and transcripts for video content without captions.
Personal, non-commercial photography is allowed in the galleries without flash unless a posted notice says otherwise. Video cameras and tripods need advance permission.
Hours and Admission
The Henry is open Thursday from 10 AM to 7 PM and Friday through Sunday from 10 AM to 5 PM. It is closed Monday through Wednesday, and last entry is 30 minutes before closing. Admission is free to all visitors.
The museum also closes on Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. On Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve, it closes at 3 PM. For current hours and closure details, check the official site before you go.
The Henry says its galleries are typically quietest before 11 AM and on Thursdays after 5 PM. Complimentary earplugs and fidgets are available at the front desk. For auditorium programs and most gallery programs, assisted listening devices are available on request; contact the museum in advance about devices for gallery events.
Getting to the Museum
The Henry sits on the University of Washington campus, with entry from the plaza at 15th Avenue NE and NE 41st Street. U District Station is an 8-minute walk through the U District, while University of Washington Station is a 15-minute walk across campus.
Both stations are on Sound Transit’s 1 Line. Several buses serve the area; for route planning, use the Seattle public transport guide and the King County Metro Trip Planner.
If you arrive by car, street parking is usually available nearby. The UW Central Parking Garage is another option: parking is paid on weekdays and free on Saturday afternoons and Sundays.
ADA visitor parking is in the underground garage, with elevator access to the public plaza at the Henry’s main entrance. Self-serve visitor parking is on levels C02, C03, and C04; level C04 has four ADA stalls closest to the elevator near the museum entrance.
If you use a wheelchair or stroller and arrive by bus, the Henry recommends getting off at 15th Avenue NE and NE 41st Street, then taking the ramp north toward the Central Parking Garage entrance on 15th Avenue NE.
Pairing a Gallery Visit with Nearby Stops
The Burke-Gilman Trail runs a few blocks south of the Henry, making a gallery visit easy to combine with a walk or bike ride. If you cycle to the museum, turn north on 15th Avenue NE and use the bike rack in the plaza outside the front doors.
For a broader day out, the gallery visit can also fit into a plan around north Seattle. The one-day Seattle itinerary from North Seattle offers another starting point for shaping that kind of outing.