San Francisco is known for its world-renowned museums, and if you’re looking for a cultural experience, you’ll be sure to find it here. From the Museum of Modern Art to the California Palace of the Legion of Honor, these institutions offer visitors a chance to explore some of the most interesting and well-crafted exhibits in the world.

Here are some of our favorite San Francisco museums, along with a sneak peek at some of their most outstanding exhibits.

1. San Francisco Museum of Modern Arts (SFMOMA) 

The first construction of the modern art museum was finished in 1995, and a new building, which was completed in 2016, was unveiled in 2016. 

This ambitious extension was created by international architecture company Snohetta, making it one of the biggest museums of modern art in the nation. San Francisco’s fog and rippling water served as inspiration for the unusual, textured exterior.

The new museum is home to an incredible collection of contemporary art, including works by Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock, and Mark Rothko. In fact, there are 33,000 pieces of art within, spanning media arts, architecture and design, painting, and photography. One of the most popular exhibits at SFMOMA is the Diane Arbus retrospective.

The room, which is saturated with light, has six sculpture-decked terraces and the biggest living wall in the nation. More than 19,000 plants, including approximately 20 California native species, are abundant there.

2. Legion of Honor 

The California Palace of the Legion of Honor was built in 1924 to house the Fine Arts Museums’ art collections. The Beaux-Arts style building is located on a bluff overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge and has sweeping views of San Francisco and the bay.

Credit: Legion of Honor Facebook page

With its white limestone, marble, and shining chevron wood exterior, this imposing Beaux-Arts structure is an architectural marvel in and of itself. This beautiful Beaux-Arts style building is located on a bluff overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge and has sweeping views of the city.

The museum contains an impressive collection of antiquities, paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts from all over the world. It is focused on both ancient and modern art, has more than 800 European paintings in its permanent collection, of which 250 are now on display. These include works by masters like Claude Monet and Fra Angelico.

Some of the most notable exhibits include works by Rembrandt, Monet, Botticelli, and Rodin. The Legion of Honor also has one of the largest collections of Egyptian art in the world.

3. M. H. de Young Museum 

The M. H. de Young Museum is a fine arts museum located in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. The museum was founded in 1895 and named after its first director, Michael Henry de Young.

The de Young is the oldest museum in San Francisco and one of the most visited art museums in the United States. This 125-year-old museum, which is situated in the heart of Golden Gate Park, focuses on art from the Americas, Africa, Oceania, and the Americas. 

It has gained notoriety recently for its extensive costume exhibitions, which range from modern Muslim wear to the work of contemporary designer Oscar de la Renta. The permanent collection includes everything from costumes, artwork, and textiles to prehistoric objects. 

A noteworthy collection of 19th-century European and American pictures is also available, with a concentration on historical California images. The new “de Youngsters Studio,” a multimedia place for youngsters to interact with art using cameras, augmented reality, and digital works, is one example of how skillfully the museum blends historical treasures with cutting-edge technology.

On the ninth floor, don’t miss the Hamon observation tower, which offers a breathtaking view over Golden Gate Park, downtown San Francisco, the Bay, and the Marin headlands.

4. California Academy of Sciences 

An aquarium, planetarium, rainforest, and natural history museum are all combined into one at California Academy. Originally founded in 1853, it is regarded as California’s oldest museum, yet it has evolved through time to stay a relevant, active place. The institution is located in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park and is one of the largest natural history museums in the world.

In all, the 400,000-square-foot facility houses nearly 26 million specimens. The Africa Hall of the Kimball Natural History Museum, which features taxidermied animals on exhibit behind glass, and the Project Lab, which displays actual scientists at work, are among the museum’s most well-known features. 

The 90-foot-diameter planetarium dome at the Morrison Planetarium is the biggest fully digital planetarium dome in existence. Within a steamy, 90-foot glass dome, you may stroll amid the butterflies, marine life, and birds of the rainforest.  The Steinhart Aquarium’s centerpiece is a 300,000-gallon Philippine Coral Reef tank teeming with unusual fish.

5. Asian Art Museum 

With more than 18,000 pieces in its permanent collection, the Asian Art Museum has one of the largest collections of Asian art in the world. Although the museum and the de Young originally shared a location, it gradually surpassed its confined quarters. 

The museum moved into the former San Francisco public library building in Civic Center in 2003 following substantial renovations by architect Gae Aulenti; on the second level, you can still read phrases about books and literature inscribed on the marble walls. The structure is divided into galleries that focus on China, Korea, Japan, South Asia, the Persian and West Asian worlds, the Himalayas, and the Tibetan Buddhist world. 

From ancient jade carvings to calligraphy scrolls and contemporary installations, the galleries showcase an array of art forms and styles. The museum also holds rotating exhibitions;  a visit to the museum’s website will tell you what is currently on display.

The museum’s cafe, Samovar Tea Lounge, is a great place to relax with a cup of tea and a light meal. The lounge overlooks the museum’s garden, which is particularly beautiful in springtime.

6. Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD) 

This museum of modern art honors black culture in all of its manifestations. A passion project of former San Francisco mayor Willie Brown, it was launched in 2005. The 20,000 square foot area may be modest, but the focus is wide as it explores African heritage both historically and currently. Four themes—Origin, Movement, Adaptation, and Transformation—are at the heart of the often changing exhibitions. 

The themes of origins, movement, adaption, and transformation all focus on the ways in which individuals of African heritage have created new identities. Origins analyze the African foundations of contemporary art and society. Movement discusses the Slave Trade. Adaptation looks at the ways in which people of African descent have adapted to their new environments. Transformations cover the myriad ways contemporary artists are redefining what it means to be African.

The exhibitions that fall under these four broad categories are often very moving. Examples include Textural Rhythms: Constructing the Jazz Tradition through Contemporary African American Quilts, Beyond the Blues: Ending the Prison Industrial Complex, and Dandy Lion: Rearticulating Black Masculine Identity. The museum offers annual programs for Bay Area emerging artists and poets in residence in addition to its temporary displays.

MoAD is located in the Yerba Buena Gardens, adjacent to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA). The museum is small, but its exhibitions are well-curated and thought-provoking. If you’re interested in African art and culture, MoAD is definitely worth a visit.

7. Exploratorium 

The Exploratorium isn’t your average museum. This “museum of science, art, and human perception” is designed to spark curiosity in all who enter. Founded in 1969 by physicist and educator Frank Oppenheimer, the hands-on facility invites visitors of all ages to explore.

There are more than 600 exhibits onsite, and new ones are always being added. Many of the exhibits focus on the ways we see and experience the world around us. For example, you can experiment with light and color in the Optical illusions exhibit or learn about how animals use camouflage to survive in their habitats in The Living World exhibit.

Other popular exhibits include the Tactile Dome (a pitch-black maze you navigate by touch), the Earthquake exhibit (which lets you experience the power of a quake), and the Wave Music exhibit (where you can create your own music with light waves). With so much to see and do, it’s no wonder the Exploratorium is one of San Francisco’s most popular museums.

Featured Image: Museum of African Diaspora official website