The Wharton Esherick Museum, a National Historic Landmark for Architecture, is open to the public by advance reservation March through December.
Thursdays through Sundays, we offer the Experiencing Esherick Tour, a journey through the Esherick Studio—a hand-crafted building filled with Esherick’s art and personal objects, which is itself an inhabitable artwork. We also offer special topic tours on select weekends throughout the year. Learn more about our tour offerings below!
Please review our visitor guidelines below before booking your tour. Our FAQs should help answer all of your questions when planning a visit to the Museum, but please do not hesitate to contact us with any additional questions at [email protected].
All visitors must have advance reservations.
Select a tour below for details on tour times and admission.
Regarding COVID-19: The health and well-being of our visitors, staff, and volunteers is of utmost importance and we make every effort to provide an enjoyable and safe experience for all. At this time masking is optional, but we will continue to follow guidance from local health experts and make changes to this policy if necessary.
Please understand that an inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present. If you feel unsure about visiting in person, you can always join us for a virtual program or explore the Studio from home!
Experiencing Esherick Tour
Experience Esherick’s singular creative vision on a guided immersion through his iconic Studio. For over forty years, Esherick built, sculpted, painted, and furnished his hillside studio-home into a joyful expression of art in everyday life. Our primary tour offering, this experience introduces visitors to Esherick’s strong sense of place, deep connection with the natural world, networks of artists and collaborators, and innovations within the fields of art, craft, design, and architecture.
This 60-75 minute guided tour includes the Esherick Studio interior and grounds.
Topic Tour: Esherick and Architecture
This specialty topic tour focuses on the architecture of the Wharton Esherick Museum. Esherick is best-known as an artist and craftsperson. He had no formal training in design. Still, he nurtured a lifelong fascination with architecture that shows in the unique cluster of experimental buildings he created for his home and workspace, now a National Historic Landmark for Architecture.
75-90 minutes long. A portion of the tour is outdoors, on unpaved ground. Please dress for the weather.
Topic tours are available on select weekend days. Click “Book a Topic Tour: Esherick and Architecture” to view our current tour schedule.
View full Topic Tour: Esherick and Architecture Schedule and Details
The Mortar Between the Stones: Stories of the Studio
When Wharton Esherick built his sandstone Studio, he shaped the mortar just so, to emphasize the natural qualities of the stones. Similarly, the stories that have collected around the Studio bind together and animate the artworks within. Come share in the artist’s life, loves, friendships, and creative partnerships with a special tour that is built on storytelling. Drawing from WEM’s rich collection of oral histories, the tour brings the Esherick Studio to life through the words of Wharton Esherick and the people who knew him.
This one hour tour offers first-time and repeat visitors alike a complete tour of Esherick’s Studio, plus behind-the-scenes access to stories and accounts that are not part of the general tour, including audio of Esherick himself!
View full The Mortar Between the Stones: Stories of the Studio Schedule and Details
Group Tours
We are pleased to offer the immersive experience of our campus to larger groups. By rotating throughout the Studio and grounds we can accommodate up to 16 guests on a group tour (a minimum of 9 guests is required).
We reserve Wednesdays to accommodate group tours. If Wednesdays are not available for your group, Thursdays and Fridays may be requested. Please note that scheduling on these days is limited and based on availability within our public tour program. We strongly recommend reaching out at least 6 weeks in advance to help us accommodate your preferred date.
This 90-minute tour includes the Esherick Studio interior and grounds. Groups will enjoy a welcome and introduction together and then be divided into two groups to tour the site.
Expanded Access
ACCESS Cardholders receive admission to the Studio for $2 per person (for up to 4 people). To book your visit, ACCESS Cardholders must call (610) 644-5822 or email [email protected] to make advance reservations. Please bring your valid ACCESS card and photo ID with you. Cardholders must present these onsite to receive the discount.
Not valid for event or program admission, or with any other offers or group rates. ACCESS Admission is a city-wide initiative led by Art-Reach.