Photos Can’t Tell the Whole Story
- Free for Museum Members
Event Details
On view for one month only! This is a rare opportunity to experience these extraordinary instruments up close and in concert.
What do the fronts of these guitars really look—and sound—like? Come see and hear them for yourself as we celebrate the opening of this one-of-a-kind exhibition on Friday, February 13. Enjoy wine and hors d’oeuvres, a behind-the-scenes conversation with Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery director William Eaton, and live music performed on instruments featured in the exhibition.
This special exhibition features guitars built by 50 accomplished guitar makers, all graduates of the Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery, along with instruments crafted by leading guitar-making companies that employ Roberto-Venn alumni. Founded in 1975, the Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery is the longest-running guitar-making school in North America, and its graduates have helped shape the global guitar industry as independent builders, innovators, and leaders within major brands. Each instrument incorporates historic rosewood and mahogany brought from the jungles of Nicaragua to Phoenix in the late 1960s by co-founder John Roberts, connecting every guitar to the school’s origins and to five decades of craftsmanship and tradition.
The exhibition includes instruments from iconic brands such as Fender, Gibson, PRS, Taylor, Collings, and Renaissance | Rick Turner Guitars, alongside exceptional small-shop makers including Michihiro Matsuda, Ray Kraut, Mario Beauregard, and many more.
Admission to this event is $25 for non-members; FREE for museum members + 1 guest. Not a member yet? Join today! Membership starts at $35 and includes free admission to the museum all year long and other amazing benefits!
