Small Museums in Tucson Arizona

When visiting the city of Tucson, Arizona, you might want to find places to spend time away from the desert sun and heat. Luckily there are several museums you can visit with good art and great air conditioning. Today I will explore two of them.

Tucson Desert Art Museum

A strip mall on the east side of Tucson may not be where you would expect to find an art museum, but you would be wrong. In 2013, James E. Conley (1943-2020) decided to take part of his extensive art collection and create a museum to share it with the public. He worked with Rhonda R. Smith to create the Tucson Desert Art Museum, using his collection of art, artifacts and textiles.

The Desert Art Museum has an amazing collection of Navajo and Hopi textiles, in a wide variety of styles and designs.

It also offers a very nice collection of artwork from and about the southwest.

The Tucson Desert Art Museum also host temporary shows by contemporary artists. When I visited, it was home to Cruzendo la Linea – Crossing the Line. These pieces are in reaction to the issues brought by lives and families split by the border between the United States and Mexico.

The Mini Time Machine – museum of miniatures

Patricia (1933-2022) and Walter Arnell (1924-2015) were ardent collectors of fine miniatures. Patricia began collecting doll houses as a young child, and her passion grew when they moved to Tucson in the 1970’s. They enjoyed sharing their collection, and in 2009 they opened the Mini Time Machine museum of miniatures.

The museum is divided into sections based on the type of miniature; doll house, store front, neighborhood street, all get their due. There are even a winter wonderland and a garden of mythical creatures.

When I visited there was a special exhibit of the work of Ray Harryhausen (1920-2013). Harryhausen was a master of miniature stop-motion photography. His work made movies like The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, Clash of the Titans, and many more films to remember.

Nuts and Bolts

• Tucson Desert Art Museum – 7000 E. Tanque Verde Road. Open Wed – Sat, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM. Entrance fee is Adults $12/ Seniors $10/ Students $6
• Mini Time Machine museum of miniatures – 4455 E. Camp Lowell Drive. Open Tue – Sun 9:00AM – 4:00PM. Entrance fee is Adults $15/ Seniors and Students $13/ Youth $9