Culture, history and a cup of coffee—no other museum in Olathe has as much going for it as the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art does.

Located in Johnson County Community College at 12345 College Blvd. the Nerman Museum features contemporary works of art made by artists from all over the country and has an average annual attendance of around 70,000-75,000 visitors.

One of the main themes of the museum is immigration.

Their latest exhibition, “Domestic Seen,” featured works by artists Julie Blackmon, Matt Bollinger, Ramiro Gomez, Ezra Johnson, Thomas Kiefer, Sean Lyman and Liz Markus. All their works had a focus on “interiors, objects and related domestic scenes to convey perceptions regarding varied experiences,” such as immigration, wealth, family and home.

Their paintings depict Latino immigrants working in different, seemingly mundane jobs, which the artists “imbue with critical content that resonates both locally and nationally.”

Other Latino themed works of art include pictures of common items such as bars of soap and garden gloves put together. All these photographed items were left behind by immigrants after they were caught trying to get into the United States.

The second floor of the museum features several paintings and pottery with American Indian themes.

One of the museum’s most iconic sculptures is the “Some/One” by Do-ho Suh, a giant robe made out of military dog tags. Next to this sculpture are several paintings depicting the internment of Japanese immigrants during World War II.

The museum also features an entire gallery (the Kansas Focus Gallery) dedicated to artists who lived, were educated, or worked in Kansas.

The Nerman Museum also offers lectures, activities for families and art classes for children.

For Katherine Morse, educator coordinator, the best part about working at the Nerman Museum of Contempoary Art is getting to interact with different people, encouraging their curiosity and helping them to learn about art.

Although Morse does not lead tours very often, she particularly enjoys leading tours for young children.

“[Kids are] very uninhibited in their responses to art, and usually have delightful comments,” Morse said.

The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sundays.

Admission and tours are free, and the museum has a small café (Café Tempo) where visitors can enjoy a cup of coffe and food made by culinary arts JCCC students every Friday.