Housed in two adjoining private buildings, this eclectic collection is worth seeing. There is always a special exhibit, in this case a series of paintings about the migration of the African American community during the 1940s. Among the permanent collection are paintings by Renoir, Degas, and Chagall among others. Allow at least 2 hours. The layout of the houses and exhibit rooms can be a bit confusing, and while there are elevators, count on some stairs.

This is a smaller museum off the beaten path from the Smithsonians, over in the Dupont Circle area. It is worth a side trip and the $20 admission for an adult. With it being smaller, you don't feel this overwhelming need to keep moving room to room before you run out of time. Yet, at the same time, you can see original art of many modern art masters. Everything from El Greco to Picasso to Monet to Van Gogh. It was actually very nice to have a slow walk of the place and enjoy myself for just part of an afternoon.

Interesting collection of art! A lot of variety. Many early 20th and late 19th Century master works as well as some more modern artists. The home (attached to the main entry wing) is beautiful.

On this long waited post Covid return to DC, I planned my week to include a concert at this wonderful art establishment. I was already familiar with the collection from my London days, when some of the works were on exhibit at the South Bank Center, inducing the famous Luncheon of the Boating Party. But to visit the museum itself at its home space was a new delight for me. So many works. So little time, on a busy October Sunday. This concert included offerings by pianist Vijay Iyer and The Parker Quartet. The program was diverse, including Mozart, works by Iyer, and a poignant reminder of world events, String Quartet No. 3 by Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov. The setting and the acoustics were perfect. A delightful autumn afternoon was mine to enjoy. Highly recommend, and book early if you plan to attend, concerts are a hot ticket and sell out.

Yes yes we know about the magnificent collection: A Van Gogh here, Renoir, El Greco, a Diebenkorn, one half of the Jacob Lawrence Migration series (the other half lives at MOMA) and much much more. Because in the old days people who made millions upon millions bought art…and eventually made it available to the rest of us as a museum. And it’s lucky for us they did because it’s a terrific memorable collection. But what you shouldn’t miss is the cafe. I usually stay away from these museum cafes but the food was excellent and the coffee robust. Fairly reasonable considering it’s a museum (pricey but not absurd). The cup of squash soup was bursting with flavour, had a bit of kick, and came with a generous slab of rustic bread. Held us over until dinner. Altogether worth visiting on every trip to DC. The cafe too!