The Mattatuck Museum's fine arts collection of more than 2,000 works includes paintings, drawings, watercolors, prints and etchings, and sculpture, with a focus Connecticut subjects and Connecticut artists. The Museum holds a comprehensive compilation of works of artists who have lived or worked in Connecticut from the earliest Colonial times to the present day. The Decorative Arts collection includes numerous samplers created by girls aged 9 to 20, between 1784 and 1840.
18th- and 19th-century artists represented in the collection include John Trumbull, John Kensett, Frederick Church, Charles Ethan Porter and John Ferguson Weir. 20th-century and contemporary artists include Milton Avery, Anni and Josef Albers, Ashile Gorky, Hans Richter, and Peter Poskas. One of the Museum's most significant holdings is a collection of the works of surrealist artist Kay Sage, and archival materials from Kay Sage and her husband Yves Tanguy, Naum Gabo, and Alexander Calder.
Museum is a member of the Connecticut Art Trail, a partnership of 18 museums and historic sites. The Art Pass, which is good for a year, includes one-day admission to each museum.