UCR ARTS opened to the public in 2010, bringing together the California Museum of Photography (founded in 1973), the Jack and Marilyn Sweeney Art Gallery (1963), and the Barbara and Art Culver Center of the Arts (2010). Located three miles from UCR’s main campus, UCR ARTS is located on a single block in adjacent historical buildings downtown Riverside.

UCR ARTS strives to advance the understanding and appreciation of the arts through extraordinary experiences in contemporary visual and performing art, photography and photographic technologies, past and present. From major exhibitions, artist projects, performances and community programs, independent and foreign language films, UCR ARTS engages both global and regional audiences.

The extensive art, photography, and research collections of the California Museum of Photography and the Jack and Marilyn Sweeney Art Gallery make UCR ARTS an important destination for audiences as well as researchers working in a wide range of fields. The California Museum of Photography has more than 500,000 pieces in its collection, spanning the history of photography. The Culver Center has over 1,500 works of contemporary art. Researchers and visitors from around the world come to UCR ARTS to explore its collections.

The Culver houses a 72-seat state-of-the-art film and video screening room; the Coil Atrium Gallery for exhibitions, music, and performances under a magnificent 35-foot skylight, and f-stop pedestrian gallery. Culver’s second floor contains an incubator for advanced research in the arts, dance studios, and a black-box theater. The screening room exhibits more than 250 different films every year and is one of just a few venues in the region to screen independent, foreign, documentary, and experimental films.