The Bronx Museum of the Arts (BxMA) is re-envisioning the role of museums in contemporary society: it addresses the changing needs of its diverse constituencies, while standing at the forefront of scholarly discourse, museum practices, and innovative public programs. As such, BxMA is recognized as "an important player in shaping New York art of both the present and the future" (The New York Times).

The Bronx Museum was founded in 1971 by a group of local residents to bring the visual arts to the Bronx. It has remained the only fine art museum in the Bronx. In its first decade, it was housed in the public rotunda of the Bronx County Courthouse located on Grand Concourse and 161st Street.  In 1982, it moved five blocks north on the Concourse to 165th street into a former synagogue purchased and donated by the City of New York.

BxMA’s permanent collection is unique in its focus on contemporary art by artists of African, Asian, and Latin American descent. Initiated in 1986, BxMA's collection policy demonstrates an ongoing commitment to exhibit, preserve, and document the work of artists not typically represented within more traditional museum collections. In 2000 it was expanded to include artists who have live(d) and/or work(ed) in the Bronx and for whom the Bronx has been critical to their artistic development. The collection is composed of more than 800 contemporary works of art in all media, conveying a broad range of modern and contemporary art practices. 

In the past three decades, BxMA has presented hundreds of critically acclaimed exhibitions featuring works by culturally diverse and under-recognized artists from a spectrum of levels, on themes of special interest to the Bronx community, and themes that explore the intersections between popular culture and contemporary art.  The Museum strives to present exhibitions that expand discourse and scholarship, promote cross-cultural dialogue, and resonate with urban audiences.  Highlights include: “The Latin American Spirit” (1988), an examination of the role played by Latin American artists in the development of modern and contemporary art; “Division of Labor: Women's Work in Contemporary Art, 1970-1995” (1995), on the shifting discourse on gender roles in the domestic environment and within contemporary art; “Urban Mythologies: The Bronx Represented Since the 1960s” (1999), on how the Bronx has been represented in art, film, media, and popular culture; “Game Show: Installations and Sculptures by Willie Cole” (2001), which won 1st place in the Best Exhibition of an Under Recognized or Emerging Artist category by the International Art Critics Association; and “One Planet Under a Groove: Hip Hop and Contemporary Art” (2001), on the transnational impact of hip-hop culture on contemporary art. One third of BxMA’s exhibition schedule is devoted to the AIM (Artist in the Market Place) program. Since 1980, this cornerstone program for emerging artists has offered a 12-week professional development seminar on essential topics such as tax preparation and self-promotion in addition to a high-visibility exhibition.  36 artists are selected each year; over 700 annually apply.  To date, BxMA has prepared over 800 artists to enter the New York art market; many of have gained commercial and/or critical success.

The education department serves school, teen, family, and adult participants, in addition to artists to encourage new work and support career development.  With major support awarded in 2000 from the Small Business Administration, BxMA has established an innovative museum art instruction program for youth (school, after-school) and families. Enhanced and expanded programs are informed by a collaborative process among participants and instructors; the facilitation of ideas and different modes of self-expression; and connections between viewers everyday experience within specific areas in contemporary culture.