The Kaluga Museum of Fine Arts is the largest art collection in the Kaluga region. It opened on June 12, 1918, in a house that belonged to doctor N.I. Vasilyev, which is now located at 81 Dzerzhinsky Street.

Nikanor Ivanovich Vasilyev, a native of Kaluga, born in 1832 and passed away in 1917, bequeathed his art collection to his hometown. His private collection became the foundation for the museum's collection.

Until 1924, the museum operated as an independent institution, but then, along with other Kaluga museums, it became part of the Kaluga United Museum, becoming its department.

From 1921 to 1935, the museum and then the department were headed by Vsevolod Nikolaevich Levandovsky. He was a talented artist and a graduate of the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, dedicating his life to preserving artistic values and organizing museum work. Thanks to his efforts, the collections of Kaluga's museums were enriched with artworks from the estates of the Kaluga province. In 1926, with his participation, the Kaluga branch of the Association of Artists of Revolutionary Russia was established, regular exhibitions of local artists began, and an art studio was opened. In the pre-war years, the museum became one of the cultural centers of Kaluga.

From 1937 to 1960, the museum was headed by M.M. Dneprovskiy, the first art historian in its history.

In 1939, the art department again became the Kaluga City Art Museum and joined the system of the Committee for Arts.

During the Great Patriotic War, the museum's collections could not be evacuated, and many works were lost. However, a museum employee, N.M. Maslov, managed to preserve part of the collection by hiding boxes with valuable works.

In the fall of 1944, the museum reopened to visitors, and its funds began to be replenished with new exhibits. Since then, it has been called the "Kaluga Regional Art Museum."

In 1969, the main building of the city estate of the Bilibins-Chistokletovs, an architectural monument of the early 19th century of federal significance, was transferred to the museum. The museum now occupies almost the entire complex of the estate.

From 1989 to 1997, restoration work was carried out in the museum building, and on June 26, 1997, the updated exhibition was opened to visitors.

The museum has branches: the Tarusa, Ulyanovsk, Khvastovich, and Mosalsk art galleries, as well as an Information and Educational Exhibition Center in Kaluga. It serves as a methodological center for art galleries in the region.