Skip to content

Seattle Culture

Best Museum: Seattle Art Museum

By Seattle Mag November 22, 2024

BestMuseum2024-SeattleArtMuseum_1600x900
Photo by Rob Smith

This article originally appeared in the November/December 2024 issue of Seattle magazine.

We asked. You answered. Our annual Readers’ Choice awards highlights the best of the city in numerous categories. From neighborhoods to restaurants and all in-between, these are your picks about what makes the city tick.

Since 1933, SAM has been showing off art, and does it well. SAM’s commitment to diversity and inclusion is clear in thoughtfully curated displays that explore global perspectives while keeping a Pacific Northwest focus. Its long-standing pledge to racial equity in programming has been active since the mid-1990s.

Hot Tip

Free admission on the first Thursday of every month year-round.

Staff Pick

The Museum of Flight. I posit that the top criteria for “best museum” should be the sheer volume of content, and the extent to which the content excites and inspires the senses. — Jonathan Sposato, CEO

About Best of the City

Every year, our annual Readers’ Choice Awards round up Seattle’s best — from standout burger joints to the city’s most scenic spots. Whether you’re after fresh seafood, cocktails with a view, or a place to unwind, these are the places to be.

Follow Us

Cloudy With a Chance of Joy

Cloudy With a Chance of Joy

A new sky of smiling clouds floats in the Seattle Art Museum’s main lobby

The latest installation at SAM is hard to miss: 40 big, grinning clouds now hover above the Brotman Forum, the museum’s main entrance space. Each one is four feet wide and made of white plastic, designed to look like it’s drifting gently overhead. The piece is called Little Cloud Sky, created by FriendsWithYou, a Los…

Finding Her Way Back

Finding Her Way Back

Washington native Mary Lambert channels heartbreak, healing, and hope in her first major single in nearly a decade

It’s taken more than three years, 42 revisions, and nearly 60 mixes for Mary Lambert to finish and release her powerful new single, “The Tempest.” “I just became such a perfectionist,” the Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter and Washington state native tells Seattle magazine from her current home in western Massachusetts. “(‘The Tempest’) feels like one of my…

Has Sad Boy Summer Arrived?

Has Sad Boy Summer Arrived?

Seattle’s Johnny Huynh drops a cinematic new music video that’s moody, heartfelt, and rooted close to home

We had Boyz II Men when I was a kid. Then Usher and Justin Timberlake. Now it’s Seattle’s own, Johnny Huynh. The 22-year-old singer-songwriter and recent UW grad has built his music career over the past two years, one viral video at a time. His latest single, “SAY,” was released at the end of June,…

It’s Official: ACT, Shakespeare Merge to Create Union Arts Center

It’s Official: ACT, Shakespeare Merge to Create Union Arts Center

Inaugural season features five works

More than a year after an exploratory announcement and six months after reaching a deal, it’s official: ACT Contemporary Theatre and Seattle Shakespeare Co. are now one entity. The two Seattle arts organizations announced their first annual 2025/26 season on July 1, the day they officially joined forces. Now known as Union Arts Center, the…