The Hunter Museum of American Art rents five spaces for meetings, dinners, receptions and weddings, from a 100-seat auditorium to a river terrace that takes 450 seated or 800 standing. The museum sits on a bluff above the Tennessee River in the Bluff View Art District of Chattanooga, Tennessee, at 10 Bluff View Avenue.
Seminars and company events
The Auditorium gives a company complete privacy for a meeting or presentation, with a wired and a wireless podium, a retractable screen, a projector, wireless microphones and background music included. Organizers can also bring in their own professional audiovisual firm. Larger company dinners, client receptions and galas use the Lobby or the terraces. Standard rentals run in the evening, as a four-hour block between 6 pm and midnight with time for setup and breakdown, and daytime rentals between 8 am and 6 pm are available on request. An event coordinator, maintenance, cleaning, event security and a police officer are part of every event. Nonprofit organizations receive a discount.
Weddings and receptions
Weddings use the same spaces, and the River Terrace, with its views of the North Shore and the bridges, is the largest. A three-hour bridal portrait session can be booked on Tuesdays, on the mansion's staircase or in an unused event space, and it is included with a rental. On Saturdays in peak season, from March through December, the museum requires a rental of the full contemporary wing or of the River Terrace.
Rooms and capacities
The Lobby covers 2,400 square feet and takes 200 seated or 350 standing. The Auditorium covers 1,400 square feet, with 100 seated or 150 standing. The 24 Hour Terrace, at 1,600 square feet, takes 100 seated or 250 standing, and the Paley Terrace, at 1,200 square feet, 50 seated or 100 standing. The River Terrace covers 8,000 square feet, with 450 seated or 800 standing. The museum says its spaces fit events from 20 to 1,000 guests.
Catering
Food comes from a list of approved Chattanooga caterers, and linens, flowers and decor come from approved vendors. The museum holds a liquor license and runs the bar itself, with product, bartenders, bar tables and black linens, and glassware for up to 400 guests. Bar service can be hosted, cash or ticketed, billed on consumption. Food and drink are not allowed in the galleries, and open-flame candles, confetti, glitter, helium balloons and fog machines are not permitted anywhere.
History and setting
The museum began in a mansion built in 1904 and designed by Abram Garfield, which opened as an art museum in 1952; later wings now hold most of the event spaces. The collection covers American art from the colonial period to the present. The 50-foot rock face below the museum gives many spaces views of the Veterans and Walnut Street bridges and the hills of the North Shore.
Getting there
Downtown Chattanooga is a few minutes away, and Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport is about 12 miles east. Up to five parking spaces can be reserved in the museum lot through the coordinator; valet or shuttles go through outside vendors, and High Street parking is first come, first served. Every event needs a certificate of liability insurance.
