The seven best Los Angeles museums

The old stereotype that Los Angeles is a shallow place obsessed with appearance and ephemeral beauty doesn’t hold much water when measured against the impressive number of world-class museums the city has to offer. Not only are the following institutions filled with fascinating treasures, artefacts and artworks from around with world, they’re often based in truly beautiful buildings in their own right, and home to relaxing gardens, sun-kissed courtyards and unparalleled views. These are the museums that are not-to-be missed in the City of Angels.

The Broad

When philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad decided to fund the construction of a new contemporary art museum in downtown Los Angeles, right next door to the metallic waves of Frank Gehry’s iconic Walt Disney Concert Hall, they knew they needed a building that could hold its own. The competition was won by American architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro, whose honeycomb-like concrete design artfully compliments its neighbour. Inside, the 120,000-square-foot building hosts arguably the city’s finest collection of modern art, with works and installations by Andy Warhol, Kara Walker, Roy Lichtenstein and hundreds more. Whatever you do, don’t miss Yayoi Kusama’s two immersive Infinity Mirror Rooms.

The Broad is located at 221 S Grand Ave

thebroad.org

Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens

The Huntington might just be the most impressive day out in Los Angeles, although frankly you’ll be hard-pressed to take it all in even if you spend a full day there. The former estate of railroad tycoon Henry Huntington and his wife Arabella, the site sprawls over 120 acres and includes one of the most diverse and breathtaking botanical gardens in the country. Once you’ve wandered among the roses, explored the Japanese garden and hiked through the desert garden you’ll still need to make time to view exquisite collections of European and American art. Then there’s the library, which displays one of only eleven Gutenberg Bibles known to exist, Shakespeare’s Hamlet in quarto form and letters and manuscripts by the likes of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin.

The Huntington is located at 1151 Oxford Rd, San Marino

huntington.org

Getty Villa

The origins of the spectacular Getty Villa date back to 1954, when the oil magnate J. Paul Getty opened a gallery near his home on the Pacific coast. Needing more space, Getty set out to build a full-scale Roman villa looking over the ocean, inspired by the Villa of Papyri at Herculaneum. The new museum opened in 1974 although he ailing Getty, who died in 1976, was never able to visit it. Today, the grounds bring a luxurious vision of Ancient Rome to life, while the collection is home to 44,000 Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities dating from 6,500 BC to 400 AD.

The Getty Villa is located at 17985 Pacific Coast Hwy

getty.edu/visit/villa

Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)

Anyone who has ever strolled down Wilshire Blvd will have been captivated by the artist Chris Burden’s installation “Urban Light”, which brings together 202 working cast-iron street lights from around Los Angeles. The piece is a fitting introduction to the illuminating collection of modern masterpieces displayed at LACMA, the largest art museum in the Western United States. The spacious complex was designed by architect William Pereira, and has been based on its current site since 1965. The museum is set to expand still further next year, when the refurbished David Geffen Galleries are scheduled to open.

LACMA is located at 5905 Wilshire Blvd

lacma.org

Academy Museum of Motion Pictures

It was back in 1929, shortly after creating the first Oscars, that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences first turned their attention to opening a museum dedicated to the history of cinema. It took almost a century, but in 2021 the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures finally opened its doors on Wilshire Blvd right next door to LACMA. The main galleries are housed in the Saban Building, once the May Company department store, while the eye-catching domed theatre by architect Renzo Piano was soon nicknamed “the soap bubble”. The museum itself, which regularly rotates its exhibitions to make full use of the Academy’s exhaustive archives, proves it was well worth the wait by platforming an impressively diverse range of voices while also showing off A-list memorabilia.

The Academy Museum is located at 6067 Wilshire Blvd

academymuseum.org

Hammer Museum

The wealthy industrialist Armand Hammer opened the Hammer Museum in 1990, in a 26,000-square-foot building in Westwood designed by architect Edward Larrabee Barnes. Hammer initially intended the museum to house his own vast collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art. However in the years since the museum, which is affiliated with UCLA, has gained a reputation as one of the most forward-thinking and culturally-relevant institutions in the city. Alongside Hammer’s personal collection you’ll now find work by exciting young artists, with a particular focus on those working in Los Angeles.

The Hammer Museum is at 10899 Wilshire Blvd

hammer.ucla.edu

The Getty Center

In 1997, the art collection that had previously been held at the Getty Villa upped sticks and relocated to a purpose-built, billion-dollar centre on the top of a hill in Brentwood. Today, The Getty Center is one of the most remarkable institutions in the city, accessible only be a hovertrain people mover and boasting a staggering collection of pre-20th Century art including highlights like Vincent van Gogh’s “Irises”. Just as impressive as the art collection is the atmosphere outside Richard Meier’s beautiful white pavilions, where the gardens offer some of the best panoramic views of Los Angeles that can be found anywhere in the city.

The Getty is located at 1200 Getty Center Dr

getty.edu