SFMOMA

Overview

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) is one of the largest modern and contemporary art museums in the United States. Its striking Snøhetta-designed expansion (2016) tripled the exhibition space to over 15,000 square meters.

Highlights

• Fisher Collection: Over 1,100 works from the Doris and Donald Fisher Collection, including major pieces by Ellsworth Kelly, Alexander Calder, and Gerhard Richter.
• Photography: SFMOMA was the first museum on the West Coast dedicated to photography, with over 17,800 photographs in its collection.
• Living Wall: The exterior features a massive living green wall with 19,000 plants, one of the largest in the country.

History

Founded in 1935, SFMOMA was the first West Coast museum devoted to modern art. The original Mario Botta building (1995) with its distinctive cylindrical skylight was expanded by Norwegian architecture firm Snøhetta in 2016, adding seven new floors.

Visitor Tips

• Free Floors: The ground floor galleries and the second-floor atrium are free to visit without a ticket.
• Thursday Evenings: Extended hours until 9 PM on Thursdays, with a more relaxed atmosphere.
• Duration: 2–3 hours.