The Foster Tanner Fine Arts Gallery has a long and distinguished history of service to areas of visual arts and art education as well as the entire Florida A&M University community and the citizens of the State of Florida. Its purpose as an exhibition space is to serve as a rich collaborative resource for on-going classroom research, reports, events and dialogue for university-wide classes, organizations, and other cultural activities and departmental activities across the campus.

The primary mission of the gallery program is to provide top quality exhibitions and gallery opening events to the student body. In addtion, the Foster Tanner Fine Arts Gallery is host to a variety of exhibitions that range from faculty shows to international exibitions. Due to the ever-evolving racial dynamic of the FAMU community (faculty, staff and students), selected works of art by adults, adolescents, and children of all races, creeds, nationalities and genders have been on exibit for the educational and cultrual enrichment of Florida A&M University and the surrounding Tallahassee community.