With two locations in California–the Getty Villa in Malibu and the Getty Center in Los Angeles–the J. Paul Getty Museum provides public access to European sculpture, painting, drawings, and manuscripts, as well as American and European photography and over 44,000 artifacts of ancient Greek, Roman, and Etruscan culture. The center also sponsors research, publications, and educational programs.  

• Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Founded in 1910, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art features a collection of over 100,000 pieces gathered from the ancient world as well as contemporary art studios. You can explore art from Europe, the United States, Latin America, and the largest collection of Korean art outside of the Korean peninsula. There’s also an extensive research library and Japanese garden open to the public.

• Armand Hammer Museum of Art at UCLA

Operated by the University of California Los Angeles, the Armand Hammer Museum–aka “the Hammer”–began from the personal collection of former OPEC Chairman Armand Hammer. Currently, the Hammer exhibits contemporary and historical art–from drawings, paintings, and sculpture to photographs and films. In an effort to promote the work of underrepresented contemporary and historical artists, the Hammer offers lectures, symposiums, film series, readings, and musical performances open to the public. 

• Autry Museum of Western Heritage

Co-founded by film legend Gene Autry in 1988, The Autry National Center–formerly The Autry Museum of Western Heritage–now incorporates the efforts of three institutions: The Museum of the American West, the Southwest Museum of the American Indian, and the Institute for the Study of the American West. Together, all three explore the art and history of the American west through a collection of art and artifacts, special exhibitions, and programs.

• California African-American Museum

Located in Los Angeles, California, the Corita Kent Art Center showcases the seriograph and silk screen artwork of Sister Corita Kent (1918-1986), a practicing Catholic nun and artist/activist. As part of the ecumenical Immaculate Heart Community, the Corita Art Center offers public exhibitions of Sister Corita’s art, educational outreach programs, and a calendar of weekly lectures and symposiums.

• Corita (Kent) Art Center

Begun in 1965 as The Egg and the Eye, an Arts- and Crafts-themed café, the Craft and Folk Art Museum exists today as a “living museum.” Although there’s no permanent collection, the CAFAM offers rotating exhibitions of folk art from around the world while inspiring contemporary craft artists of all ages through workshops, summer camps, and classes.

• Craft and Folk Art Museum

Begun in 1965 as The Egg and the Eye, an Arts- and Crafts-themed café, the Craft and Folk Art Museum exists today as a “living museum.” Although there’s no permanent collection, the CAFAM offers rotating exhibitions of folk art from around the world while inspiring contemporary craft artists of all ages through workshops, summer camps, and classes.

• Fisher Gallery at the University of Southern California

Founded in 1939, the Fisher Gallery is the accredited gallery of the university of Southern California. Dedicated exclusively to fine art, the Fisher Gallery presents exhibitions ranging from antiquities and old masters to contemporary local, national, and international artists–in addition to the permanent collection. Educational outreach programs–including lectures and symposiums–are free and open to the public.

• Korean American Museum

Established in 1994, in the West Hollywood home of Viennese architect Rudolph M. Schindler, the MAK Center for Art and Architecture offers a year-round events calendar of exhibitions, symposiums, lectures, and concerts, as well as a bi-annual residency program for eight artists and architects from outside the U.S. 

• MAK Center for Art and Architecture

Established in 1994, in the West Hollywood home of Viennese architect Rudolph M. Schindler, the MAK Center for Art and Architecture offers a year-round events calendar of exhibitions, symposiums, lectures, and concerts, as well as a bi-annual residency program for eight artists and architects from outside the U.S. 

• Museum of Contemporary Art

One of the largest facilities dedicated to present-day creativity, Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art offers visitors a permanent collection of  2,345 pieces created since 1945. Although the permanent collection focuses on surrealism, minimalism, and conceptual photography, the MCA also offers rotating exhibitions, as well as lectures, classes, and workshops for art fans of all ages. Situated on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile, the MCA facility includes a 300-seat theater, terraced sculpture garden, gift shop, and restaurant.

• Museum of Neon Art

Founded in Los Angeles in 1981, the Museum of Neon Art is dedicated the promotion and preservation of fine art in the medium of electric light–specifically, the neon sign. MONA offers exhibitions of neon light and art, Neon Cruises (bus tours), and eight-week neon art workshops for prospective illumination artists.  

• Skirball Cultural Center

Applauded as one of the world’s most dynamic cultural institutions, the Skirball Center of Los Angeles explores four thousand years of Jewish tradition through revolving exhibitions of rare artifacts, photographs, and interactive multimedia stations. The facility, designed by New York architect Moshe Safdie, includes a museum, revolving exhibitions of music, comedy, theatre, film, and literature, a Café, museum store, even an interactive model of Noah’s Ark!  

• Southwest Museum

One of three institutions administered by the Autry National Center, the collection of the Southwest Museum is currently closed to the public while new facilities are constructed to house the museum’s over 250,000 artifacts. In the meantime, you can still visit the museum store on Saturdays and Sundays, enjoy weekend family activities–including arts and crafts and a hands-on archaeology program–or visit the Braun Reserch Library by appointment.

• UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History

Located at the University of California Los Angeles, the Fowler Museum of Cultural History consolidates the varied collections of non-western art and artifacts on the UCLA campus. The Fowler’s permanent collection includes 150,000 pieces of art and over 600,000 archaeological artifacts from the ancient, prehistoric, and present-day cultures of Africa, Latin America, and North America. In addition, the Fowler museum sponsors rotating exhibitions and interdisciplinary events, including lectures, hands-on workshops, and film-screenings.  

1. The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Art History
http://www.metmuseum.org/home.asp

Check out the official Website of New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. Navigate from the homepage, to take a virtual reality tour, shop for souvenirs and books, make a charitable donation, or plan a visit. If you want to check out the Met’s permanent collection, you can browse art and artifacts by curatorial department, or search the database for individual pieces.

2. Artcyclopedia: The guide to museum quality art history information
http://www.artcyclopedia.com/

One of the most comprehensive guides to art online, Artcyclopedia provides some 95,000 links to 180,000 world masterpieces. Browse over 8,200 artists by name, movement, medium, or nationality; search on titles of works or search by world region to connect with the world’s most famous museums–from the Louvre to the Rijksmuseum. Regular posts provide you with art world news and articles on famous artists and artistic movements.

3. World Art Treasures (Historical art)
http://www.bergerfoundation.ch/index.html

An educational site built in memory of art historian/collector Jacques-Edouard Berger (1945-1993), The Berger Foundation World Art Treasures site offers access to slides from Berger’s personal collection. Browse slides by region, artist, or historical period (artifacts from ancient Egypt, China, Myanmar/Burma, Cambodia, and Japan are well-represented in Berger’s collection). Other highlights include historical notes and timelines, as well as lectures and essays by Berger and colleagues.

4. The Getty Museum: Art History
http://www.getty.edu/

One of the largest supporters of the arts worldwide, the J. Paul Getty Trust maintains a Website with information on the Getty Museum and Research Institute (both in Los Angeles). You can check out events calendars, subscribe to the Getty’s e-newsletter, or take advantage of other online resources. Browse artists by name, medium, or theme–or check out the Getty’s collection overview. You can also order museum publications, apply for grants, or volunteer at the Getty. 

5. Voice of the Shuttle: Art & Art History
http://vos.ucsb.edu/browse.asp?id=3404

Launched in 1994 to serve humanities research online, Voice of the Shuttle (VoS) is an evolving online database with links to art history resources around the world. Link to famous art museums, galleries, research institutes, and auction houses. You can also link to the homepages of contemporary art journals, and world-renowned university art departments.

6. About.com: Art History
http://arthistory.about.com/?once=true&

From the site that has it all, a category for Art History! At About.com’s Art History site, you’ll find short artist bios as well as more extensive guides to figures of the art world–from artists and their patrons to famous models and forgers). You can also check out online overviews and timelines of artistic movements, user articles on art and culture, and extensive links to shopping for art online. 

7. Smithsonian American Art Museum: Art History
http://www.americanart.si.edu/index3.cfm

Here you’ll find the website of the Smithsonian American Art Museum–the first federal museum dedicated to American art. Plan your visit online, or check out what’s new at the SAAM. Browse by category or search by artist name, work title, keyword, or accession number. You can also check out a full program calendar of traveling exhibitions, guest lecturers, and special performances or shop SAAM online for books, postcards, and souvenirs.

8. Library of Congress: Art History
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/index.html

Organized by the Library of Congress, American Memory is a multimedia website providing free online access to more than 9 million digitized photographs, manuscripts, recordings, books, pamphlets, and other cultural treasures from the Library of Congress and other institutional collections. Browse 100 collections by subject, creator, time period, or geographic location–or search across multiple collections. Can’t find what you’re looking for? Use American Memory’s Ask a Librarian feature to chat with librarians online.

9. Art History Network
http://www.arthistory.net/index.html

Arthistory.net brings together numerous art history resources from the World Wide Web. Here you can link to the homepages of art schools and galleries in Seattle, San Francisco, Savannah, Atlanta, and Chicago, or browse galleries by state. You can also link to articles on art history by historical period, cultural movement, or world region.

10. Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids: Art History
http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/new_pyramid/pyramids/html/el_pyramid_intro.htm

An offshoot of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s main site, Egyptian Art in the Age of the Pyramids provides online access to images and descriptions of forty-one artifacts from the Met’s Egyptian exhibit. Drawn from over thirty museums in Egypt, Europe, and North America, the artifacts showcase the art history of Egypt’s Old Kingdom (roughly 2650-2150 B.C.)–from 3D models of pyramid complexes, to images of royal statues, sculpture, and jewelry.  

11. Legacy of Genghis Khan: Art History
http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId={36C74128-EEF8-11D5-9414-00902786BF44}

An excellent online resource from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Legacy of Genghis Khan traces the artistic influence of the Yuan dynasty on the art and culture of Iran’s medieval Ilkhanid rulers from 1256 to1353. Check out images and descriptions of illuminated manuscripts and decorative arts of the period–from textiles and metalwork to woodwork and ceramics. You can also hear audio descriptions and read the exhibition’s introductory essay for a historical overview.

12. The Glory of Byzantium: Art History
http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/Byzantium/byzhome.html

The Byzantine Empire lasted for more than 1,000 years and produced a flourishing artistic culture. The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s online survey of Byzantium explores art from the two golden ages of Byzantium (324-740 and 843-1261) as well as the late period. You can browse artwork arranged by theme or period, read historical notes and descriptions, and even arrange classroom activities.

13. Cleopatra: Art History of the Ancient World
http://www.artic.edu/cleo/index.html

Named for Egypt’s last and most famous queen, Cleopatra is a multimedia guide to the Ancient Art Collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. Here you can view art and artifacts from ancient Greece, Egypt, and Italy. Browse artifacts on a timeline or by geographic region. Images of artifacts include short descriptions and audio-visual commentary on ancient art, culture, and life.

Art Exhibit- Metropolitan Museum of Art
Collections contains more than two million works of art spanning more than 5,000 years of world culture, from prehistory to the present. 

Art Exhibit- Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
International museum of fine art. 

Art Exhibit- The Art Institute of Chicago Museum
Museum houses more than 300,000 works of art and includes among its treasures, American Gothic by Grant Wood, Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks and 33 works by Monet.

Art Exhibit- National Gallery of Art – in the world illustrating major achievements in painting, sculpture, and graphic arts from the Middle Ages to the present.

Art Exhibit- Philadelphia Museum of Art
Seeks to preserve, enhance, interpret the visual arts to a diverse audience as a source of delight, illumination, and lifelong learning.

Art Exhibit- Brooklyn Museum of Art - With one of the finest collections of Egyptian art in the world, this museum also has within its permanent collection classical and middle eastern art, art of Africa, the Americas and the Pacific, as well as decorative arts and textiles.