Home · Villa Terrace

Exhibitions

16 Mar

A Century from Sopra Mare

March 16, 2024 – December 22, 2024
(Happening Now)

Uncover the hidden histories of the Villa Terrace — from private residence to iconic Milwaukee landmark.

26 Jun

We are Reflections: Celeste Contreras Skierski

June 26, 2024 – December 15, 2024
(Happening Now)

Experience the spiritual and meditative work of Villa Artist-in-Residence Celeste Contreras Skierski in her solo exhibition "We Are Reflections."

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Events

6 Nov

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

November 06, 2024 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

7 Nov

Free Admission Thursday

November 07, 2024 | 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Enjoy free admission to the Villa Terrace on the first Thursday of the month.

9 Nov

Guided Tour of the Villa

November 09, 2024 | 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Enjoy a guided tour of the Villa Terrace from its history to its exhibitions.

10 Nov

Winterlude at the Villa

November 10, 2024 | 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Enjoy a performance by some of Milwaukee's best musicians with coffee and tea at the Villa.

13 Nov

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

November 13, 2024 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

14 Nov

Free Opening Night Reception for "Disruptive Ecologies"

November 14, 2024 | 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Celebrate the opening of "Disruptive Ecologies" with seven exhibiting artists at Villa Terrace Art Museum.

16 Nov

Fall Gretchen Colnik Brunch and Hat Show

November 16, 2024 | 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Enjoy brunch and a hat show featuring work by McLaughlin & Hayes Hat Co. and Milwaukee-area fashion designers, stylists, and students.

20 Nov

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

November 20, 2024 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

4 Dec

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

December 04, 2024 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

5 Dec

Free Admission Thursday

December 05, 2024 | 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Enjoy free admission to the Villa Terrace on the first Thursday of the month.

7 Dec

Guided Tour of the Villa

December 07, 2024 | 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Enjoy a guided tour of the Villa Terrace from its history to its exhibitions.

8 Dec

Winterlude at the Villa

December 08, 2024 | 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Enjoy a performance by some of Milwaukee's best musicians with coffee and tea at the Villa.

11 Dec

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

December 11, 2024 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

2 Jan

Free Admission Thursday

January 02, 2025 | 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Enjoy free admission to the Villa Terrace on the first Thursday of the month.

8 Jan

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

January 08, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

12 Jan

Winterlude at the Villa

January 12, 2025 | 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Enjoy a performance by some of Milwaukee's best musicians with coffee and tea at the Villa.

15 Jan

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

January 15, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

22 Jan

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

January 22, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

29 Jan

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

January 29, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

5 Feb

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

February 05, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

6 Feb

Free Admission Thursday

February 06, 2025 | 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Enjoy free admission to the Villa Terrace on the first Thursday of the month.

12 Feb

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

February 12, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

19 Feb

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

February 19, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

26 Feb

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

February 26, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

5 Mar

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

March 05, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

6 Mar

Free Admission Thursday

March 06, 2025 | 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Enjoy free admission to the Villa Terrace on the first Thursday of the month.

12 Mar

Work from Home Wednesday: coworking session at the Villa

March 12, 2025 | 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Co-work at the Villa Terrace Art Museum with fellow remote workers on Wednesday afternoons.

30 Mar

Winterlude at the Villa

March 30, 2025 | 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Enjoy a performance by some of Milwaukee's best musicians with coffee and tea at the Villa.

3 Apr

Free Admission Thursday

April 03, 2025 | 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Enjoy free admission to the Villa Terrace on the first Thursday of the month.

1 May

Free Admission Thursday

May 01, 2025 | 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Enjoy free admission to the Villa Terrace on the first Thursday of the month.

5 Jun

Free Admission Thursday

June 05, 2025 | 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Enjoy free admission to the Villa Terrace on the first Thursday of the month.

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Explore Villa Terrace

Mercury Courtyard

The Mercury Courtyard is a charming cloister now dominated by the statue of Mercury, the mythical messenger of the gods. It’s surrounded by a vaulted loggia with Tuscan columns and grilled Italian windows.

Take a Tour

Great Hall

The Great Hall was the Smiths’ family room and was often used to entertain guests. The ceiling beams in the room are Georgia Pecky Cypress with white, blue and yellow stenciling.

Take a Tour

Dining Room

Like that of the Great Hall, the dining room's ceiling is made from beamed Georgia Pecky Cypress.

Take a Tour

Library

The Queen Anne-style wood paneling in the library is walnut and was installed by the Matthew Brothers of Milwaukee.

Take a Tour

Colnik Collection

Overview

The Cyril Colnik exhibition, located in the second-floor south-wing galleries, is a showcase of metal works made by Milwaukee ironsmith Cyril Colnik (1871–1958).

SEE MORE PIECES OF COLNIK'S WORK

Sconce

This sconce with three candleholders was constructed from a deer antler wrapped in iron.

Iron, deer antler 20 Inches high 1938

Masterpiece

Pictured is the centerpiece of a large grille that was Cyril Colnik’s “Masterpiece,” which demonstrated the mastery of metalworking techniques an apprentice was required to show to be named a master craftsman.

Iron 48 x 35 x 7.5 inches c. 1893

Dancing Dragon

This dynamic iron figure is dubbed the “Dancing Dragon.”

Iron 28 x 16 inches n.d.

Our Story

Lloyd and Agnes Smith

Lloyd Raymond Smith was born in 1883. He attended West Division High School in Milwaukee and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, before following his father into the family business — the A.O. Smith Corporation. Agnes Gram was born in 1893. Lloyd and Agnes married in 1915, two years after Lloyd had become president of A.O. Smith. It is said that Agnes wanted to build a unique house that reflected her love of architecture and design.

See the Whole Story

David Adler

The Smiths hired the renowned architect and Milwaukee native David Adler (1883–1949) to build their dream home. The idea to build a home in the style of a sixteenth-century Northern Italian villa came on a trip to Italy after their marriage in 1915. Choosing between two Milwaukee sites, they settled on its present location, with Adler reportedly saying, “Let Lake Michigan be my Mediterranean.” Fittingly, the original name for the home was Sopra Mare (“above the sea” in Italian).

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Rose Standish Nichols

Rose Standish Nichols (1872–1960) was a landscape architect, writer, suffragist, and peace activist. She collaborated with Villa Terrace architect David Adler on the design of the Sopra Mare garden and its water stairway, which were probably adapted from the layout of the sixteenth-century Villa Cicogna-Mozzoni garden that she described in her book, Italian Pleasure Gardens, published in 1928.

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The Villa Today

Today Villa Terrace and its Renaissance Garden are zoned as Milwaukee County parkland. Together, they serve the citizens of Milwaukee through the creation and promotion of local, regional and international visual and decorative arts, and a wide range of intergenerational community arts programming that includes theater, music, arts and crafts, creative writing, poetry, and gardening.

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A.O. Smith Corp.

The story of the A.O. Smith Corporation is one of experimentation, research, and innovation. From humble beginnings as a small machine shop located in Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point neighborhood, to its growth into a global corporation, A.O. Smith was one of the first to put significant resources into research and development, constantly seeking out new technologies and their practical application for new products and services.

See the Whole Story

Host Your Event

From weddings that hearts remember to meetings that accomplish missions, Villa Terrace is the perfect place for your next event. The unparalleled beauty of a Mediterranean-style villa will surround your guests, as they appreciate tranquil views of Lake Michigan from the Terrazzo della Luna or stroll through the Renaissance Garden.

Weddings

Private Events

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Rent Villa Terrace