5 unique Southeastern museums to scratch your culture itch

The Gallery of Iconic Guitars

You don’t have to be a professional musician to feel entertained at this museum in Nashville, Tennessee. Known by locals as The GIG at Belmont, the museum tucked inside Belmont University’s Lila D. Bunch Library captures the essence of Music City.

Steven Kern Shaw, the grandson of composer Jerome Kern, who created dozens of Broadway musicals and Hollywood films and wrote such classic songs as “Old Man River” and “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes,” was a devoted collector of stringed instruments.

Also on display is the signed Loar Quartet Master Series: an F-5 mandolin, H-5 mandola, K-5 mandocello and L-65 guitar. Not just for looking, visitors are welcome to play select guitars under supervision in the gallery. Pick up one of these gems and strum your favorite tune or just a few random notes for fun.

Credit: Hobart Jones

Credit: Hobart Jones

The Andy Griffith Museum

Pop culture enthusiasts and anyone who grew up in the 1960s will likely feel a tinge of nostalgia as they peruse the Andy Griffith Museum in Mount Airy, North Carolina.

Opened in 2009, the museum showcases Andy Griffith’s life and career in film, comedy, music and television, with a significant focus on his namesake show, broadcast on CBS from 1960 to 1968.

Mount Airy resident Emmett Forrest curated the collection from items donated by Griffith, the cast and friends. Visitors can expect to see costumes, signage, photos, props and other memorabilia from the lighthearted TV series starring Griffith as Sheriff Andy Taylor, along with a young Ron Howard as his son, Opie, and Don Knotts as his inept deputy sidekick.

As a stand-in for Mayberry — the setting of “The Andy Griffith Show” — this charming town is also where Griffith was born and raised, making this museum all the more meaningful.

Other exhibits focus on “Matlock,” the legal drama starring Griffith that aired from 1986 to 1995. Before entering the museum, take note of the Chip Galloway-designed gardens, which feature native plants from North Carolina.

Credit: Louisville Tourism

Credit: Louisville Tourism

The Muhammad Ali Center

More than a museum, the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky, is an interactive institution that allows visitors to follow Ali’s journey from his early years growing up in Louisville through his accomplishments as a three-time heavyweight champion, social activist and humanitarian.

Muhammad Ali and his wife, Lonnie, opened this multilevel center in downtown Louisville in November 2005. As lifetime director and vice chair of the board of directors, Lonnie Ali is carrying on her husband’s legacy through her work at the museum.

Permanent exhibits include “’The Greatest’ Timeline,” which highlights Ali’s boxing career from 1960 to 1981, exploring both challenges and victories through artifacts and media. A short film narrated by actor Samuel L. Jackson is projected onto a boxing ring, which visitors can view from above.

In other ongoing exhibits, guests can watch some of Ali’s most memorable fights, as well as his lighting of the Olympic torch in Atlanta in July 1996. In “Six Core Principles,” viewers learn about the principles that guided Ali’s life journey.

The center also hosts events and special exhibits, including an annual photography exhibit. “Shining a Light: Iconic Women,” on view through mid-January, showcases stunning images of women from 65 countries in their everyday lives alongside women who were pivotal figures in Muhammad Ali’s life.

Credit: Coastal Mississippi

Credit: Coastal Mississippi

Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art

A must-see for pottery lovers and architecture enthusiasts, this unique museum in Biloxi on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi celebrates the work of American ceramicist George E. Ohr (1857-1918), arguably one of the most accomplished potters of all time.

The “O’Keefe” in the name refers to the late Jeremiah “Jerry” O’Keefe and his children, who gave the museum’s capital campaign its first major gift in 1998 to honor Jerry’s wife, Rose Annette Saxon O’Keefe.

Although the institution was established in 1989, the campus that stands in Biloxi today was unveiled in 2021. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry, the museum comprises four stainless steel pods that pay homage to Ohr’s twisted ceramics.

Often referred to as “the Mad Potter of Biloxi,” Ohr endured his share of hardship in life, including a fire that destroyed his studio and pottery in 1894. That tragedy sparked some of Ohr’s most prolific work from 1895 to 1903, when he began creating paper-thin pieces in unusual forms. Eventually, Ohr stopped glazing his ceramics, and they assumed a more sculptural quality.

Also on the property is the Pleasant Reed Interpretive Center, a reconstructed shotgun house of emancipated craftsman Pleasant Reed, who built the original structure after the Civil War. The museum also offers ceramics, art and mixed media classes, as well as a summer camp for children.

Credit: Nika Kramer

Credit: Nika Kramer

Wynwood Walls

Opened in 2009, Wynwood Walls, also known as The Walls, says it is the world’s largest outdoor street art museum. In the Wynwood Arts District, just north of downtown Miami, this urban gallery exhibits graffiti and murals on 35,000 square feet of walls painted by more than 100 international artists from 21 countries. See murals by Kobra, Kenny Scharf, Tats Cru, Momo, Sandra Chevrier, Sophie Mess and countless other creatives.

Wynwood Walls is the brainchild of real estate developer Tony Goldman, who wanted to transform this once-industrial district into a vibrant neighborhood. Beyond the colorful parade of art on view, the outdoor museum is an example of how revitalization can transform an abandoned area of town into a thriving community, cultural hub and even a tourist destination, luring travelers from across the globe.

Museum programming includes guided tours, artist installations and a dynamic spray-painting experience. Within Wynwood, GGA Gallery is the fine art wing, showcasing works by renowned artists such as Simon Berger, Logan Hicks and Shepard Fairey.