San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA)

Founded in 1935 under director Grace McCann Morley as the San Francisco Museum of Art, it was the first museum on the West Coast devoted to modern and contemporary art. Originally located in the War Memorial Veterans Building, it quickly became a hub for the avant-garde, showcasing works by artists like Henri Matisse and Diego Rivera during its early years. In 1995, the museum moved to its iconic Mario Botta-designed building in the SoMa district. This move marked a significant expansion and solidified its reputation as a world-class institution. The building's signature oculus and brick facade became a landmark of the San Francisco skyline, hosting major retrospectives and expanding its photography and media arts collections significantly. The museum underwent a massive transformation starting in 2013, reopening in 2016 with a Snøhetta-designed expansion. This nearly tripled its gallery space and integrated the prestigious Doris and Donald Fisher Collection. Today, it stands as one of the largest modern art museums in the United States, seamlessly blending its original modernist roots with cutting-edge contemporary design and global art movements.