Luxury Hotel near San Diego Museum of Art

San Diego has no shortage of fine museums, more than a few of which call Balboa Park home. Among them is the San Diego Art Museum, going strong for the better part of a century and just a few miles away from Hotel Republic.

The San Diego Museum of Art: A Little History

The museum opened in 1926 as the Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego, the outgrowth of enthusiasm for a city art collection drummed up during the 1915-1916 Panama-California International Exposition. William Templeton Johnson, among the most noteworthy San Diego architects of his time, was chosen to design the art gallery: a magnificent building meant to complement the existing Spanish Colonial-style structures of Balboa Park and which drew on architectural inspiration from such Spanish landmarks as the Cathedral of Valladolid, the University of Salamanca, and the Hospital de la Santa Cruz.

After years of growth and expansion, the Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego became the San Diego Museum of Art in 1978.

Collections at the San Diego Museum of Art

The San Diego Museum of Art lays claim to more than 20,000 pieces of artwork representing thousands of years of history. It’s well known for pieces by Spanish Old Masters such as Zurbarán and Goya, but the defining characteristic is variety: from European Impressionist paintings to Buddhist sculptures from East Asia.

The museum also maintains the May S. Marcy Sculpture Garden, packed with a variety of 19th– and 20th-century sculptures and graced with quite the view of Balboa Park’s famous California Tower.

Current Exhibitions

Current exhibitions at the San Diego Museum of Art include a broad-reaching selection of works by the Mexican sculptor Victor Javier Marin Gutierrez, on display through March 3, 2019, and Modern American Prints, 1920-1948 (through February 3, 2019), which draws from the museum’s extensive holdings of American prints created via lithography, etching, and wood-engraving techniques, many of which haven’t been displayed for more than a quarter-century.

Programs & Events at the San Diego Museum of Art

From classical and jazz concerts and film screenings in the James S. Copley Auditorium to the evening DJ-driven soirees of Culture & Cocktails and hands-on art workshops, the San Diego Museum of Art offers a crammed calendar of activities and events throughout the year.

Visit the San Diego Museum of Art During Your Stay at Hotel Republic

The San Diego Museum of Art is open 10 AM to 5 PM Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday; from 10 AM to 8 PM on Friday; and from noon to 5 PM on Sunday. Check it out on your next getaway to Hotel Republic!

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