“Medieval to Metal: The Art & Evolution of The Guitar” celebrates the artistic development of the guitar. Developed by The National GUITAR Museum in New York, New York, it features 40 objects, ranging from the rare and antique to the wildly popular and innovative.

The exhibition explores all facets of the world’s most popular instrument, from its history as an instrument of popular culture over the past four hundred years to modern efforts to reinvent the guitar with different materials, shapes, and approaches to design. Spanning centuries of design and craftsmanship, the exhibition takes visitors through the history of an object that is one of the most recognizable items on the planet.

The guitar pervades culture beyond music. It was an integral element of the work of both Vermeer and Picasso, and today it is incorporated into advertising everything from clothes and cars to the Olympics. “It’s hard to find anyone who hasn’t been affected by the guitar, whether as players or just fans of all types of music. And while this may be apocryphal,” HP Newquist, Executive Director of the National Guitar Museum adds, “it’s a widely held belief that the two most recognizable man-made shapes on the planet are those of the Coca-Cola bottle and the electric guitar.”

Organized by The National Guitar Museum in New York, NY.