ArtandCulture, Baltimore

The National Gallery of Art, founded as a gift to the nation, serves as a center of visual art, education, and culture. Their collection of more than 150,000 paintings, sculpture, decorative arts, photographs, prints, and drawings spans the history of Western art and showcases some of the triumphs of human creativity. Across 363 days a year, the Gallery offers a full spectrum of special exhibitions and public programs free of charge. https://www.nga.gov/

Built to honor George Washington, the United States' first president, the 555-foot marble obelisk towers over Washington, D.C.George Washington's military and political leadership were indispensable to the founding of the United States. As commander of the Continental Army, he rallied Americans from thirteen divergent states and outlasted Britain's superior military force. As the first president, Washington's superb leadership set the standard for each president that has succeeded him. The Washington Monument towers above the city that bears his name, serving as an awe-inspiring reminder of George Washington's greatness. The monument, like the man, stands in no one's shadow.The Washington Monument, designed by Robert Mills and eventually completed by Thomas Casey and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, honors and memorializes George Washington at the center of the nation's capital. The structure was completed in two phases of construction, one private (1848-1854) and one public (1876-1884). Built in the shape of an Egyptian obelisk, evoking the timelessness of ancient civilizations, the Washington Monument embodies the awe, respect, and gratitude the nation felt for its most essential Founding Father. When completed, the Washington Monument was the tallest building in the world at 555 feet, 5-1/8 inches. https://www.nps.gov/wamo/index.htm

Founded in 1876, the Philadelphia Museum of Art showcases more than 2,000 years of human creativity, the collections and special exhibitions present masterpieces of painting, sculpture, decorative arts and architectural settings from Europe, Asia and the Americas. https://www.philamuseum.org/

The repository of the largest collection of works by Auguste Rodin outside of Paris features treasures such as The Gates of Hell and a bronze caste of The Thinker. All told, you’ll find more than 120 of the French master’s sculptures here, as well as a fascinating collection of drawings, paintings and studies. The variety of works on hand offers the perfect opportunity to contrast and compare the ways in which Rodin used and re-used the same stances, and even body parts, throughout his work. http://www.rodinmuseum.org/

Venice Island Performing Arts and Recreation Center's mission and priorities have emerged from the hopes and aspirations expressed by City of Philadelphia and Manayunk neighborhood leaders, the Executive Advisory Board, and over 500 residents who participated in surveying and community conversations. http://www.veniceisland.org/

Visit 26 restored historic buildings on 30 shaded acres where interpreters in period clothing bring the 1800s to life. Enjoy demonstrations of blacksmithing, basket weaving, book binding and more! Farm animals, carriage rides, and family activities from June-September. Special weekend events. Country Store, Ice Cream Parlor and Restaurant. Education and distance learning programs from October-May. https://www.atlanticcitynj.com/explore/attractions/details.aspx?id=16331

St. Patrick's Cathedral is the Mother Church of the Archdiocese of New York and the seat of the Archbishop. Located on Fifth Avenue, across from Rockefeller Center, the sanctuary is the largest Gothic Catholic cathedral in the US. This international landmark, dedicated in 1879, welcomes more than five million visitors each year. With its 330-foot spires, it is one of the City's most spectacular architectural sights. Inside, it boasts a seating capacity of 2,400, numerous altars and stained glass windows, and a giant organ with 7,855 pipes. https://www.nycgo.com/arts-culture/st.-patricks-cathedral

The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world for everyone to experience and enjoy. The Museum lives in three iconic sites in New York City—The Met Fifth Avenue, The Met Breuer, and The Met Cloisters. Since it was founded in 1870, The Met has always aspired to be more than a treasury of rare and beautiful objects. Every day, art comes alive in the Museum's galleries and through its exhibitions and events, revealing both new ideas and unexpected connections across time and across cultures. On January 13, 2015, the Trustees of The Metropolitan Museum of Art reaffirmed this statement of purpose and supplemented it with the following statement of mission: The Metropolitan Museum of Art collects, studies, conserves, and presents significant works of art across all times and cultures in order to connect people to creativity, knowledge, and ideas. https://www.metmuseum.org

Visitors will enjoy the Frick Art Museum; the Car and Carriage Museum; Clayton, the restored 19th-Century Victorian home of Henry Clay Frick; the Cafe at the Frick; the Greenhouse; and the Visitors' Center which once served as the Frick children's playhouse. http://www.thefrickpittsburgh.org/

Carnegie Museum of Art is arguably the first museum of contemporary art in the United States, collecting the "old master of tomorrow" since the inception of the Carnegie International in 1896. Today the Museum of Art is among the most popular and esteemed cultural institutions in the region, providing visitors with access to great works of art, studio art classes, and interpretive programs that inspire, provoke, and delight. Carnegie Museum of Art has collection of more than 32,000 objects features a broad spectrum of visual art, including painting and sculpture; prints and drawings; photographs; architectural casts, renderings, and models; decorative arts and design; and film, video, and digital imagery. The museum also houses the archive of over 70,000 negatives by photographer Charles “Teenie” Harris. https://cmoa.org/

Constellation Brands - Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center is the site of popular concerts and entertainment. 5,000 covered seats, lawn seating for 10,000 +, new state-of-the-art lawn video and sound system, expanded stage and concessions. Photo by Brian Richardson http://www.visitfingerlakes.com/listings/cmac-(performing-art-center)/190/

Founded in 1972, Geva serves up to 160,000 patrons annually, including more than 16,000 students. Geva’s productions are created and rehearsed in and for Rochester. https://www.gevatheatre.org/about-us/

From the architects George J. Dietel and John J. Wade, Buffalo City Hall was built between 1929-1931. Buffalo City Hall is an Art Deco masterpiece with outstanding murals depicting the city’s history and industry. Common Council Chamber with exquisite skylight and sculptures are a must-see. Observation Tower gives a spectacular view of the waterfront and the Ellicott radial street design for Buffalo. Closed weekends and holidays. http://www.visitbuffaloniagara.com/businesses/buffalo-city-hall/

An outstanding center of modern and contemporary art, the Albright-Knox Art Gallery has a 150-year tradition of collecting, conserving, and exhibiting the art of its time, giving rise to one of the world’s most extraordinary art collections. The Albright-Knox Art Gallery has temporarily closed its Elmwood Avenue campus to begin the construction phase of its AK360 Campus Development and Expansion Project. As part of the project, the museum will construct a signature new building on the north side of its campus and renovate its current facilities. Albright-Knox Northland, a new project space at 612 Northland Avenue in Buffalo, will open on January 17, 2020. The new Buffalo AKG Art Museum is expected to open in Spring 2022 on the Elmwood Avenue campus. http://www.visitbuffaloniagara.com/businesses/albright-knox-art-gallery-3

This National Historic Landmark building was built in 1901 during the Pan-American Exposition, and now houses The Buffalo History Museum (renamed in 2012). Research library includes a repository of genealogical information; the museum features exhibits and an extensive collection of artefacts, manuscripts, books and photographs chronicling the development of Buffalo and the Niagara Frontier. http://www.visitbuffaloniagara.com/businesses/the-buffalo-history-museum/

An art gallery that provides rotational exhibitions, gallery talks and artist forums. Local, regional, national and international professional and emerging artists are showcased through group and solo exhibitions each year. https://www.visitgreensboronc.com/things-to-do/african-american-atelier-gallery/

Volunteers were the sole staff until 1924 when city support made it possible to hire a professional director. The Great Depression tightened finances and ended City funding, forcing the institute to again rely entirely on volunteers from 1931 to 1945. It functioned — much of that time in borrowed spaces — as an art center, offering classes and exhibiting mostly local artists. The collection was small, eclectic — containing archaeological artefacts and decorative as well as fine art — and composed entirely of gifts. In 1937 the institute moved into its first permanent home, a historic mansion. Just four years later, a disastrous fire destroyed the building and much of the collection, threatening the institute’s existence. Over the next quarter-century, the museum has continued to enrich the lives of those in Northeast Ohio and beyond through modern and contemporary art. Its nationally recognized collection was documented through the publication of collection catalogues. Three acquisitions endowments were created to ensure the collection’s future growth. A greatly enlarged general endowment provided increased, more stable funding, allowing the staff to undertake ambitious programs and exhibitions with national and even international impact. In 2007, its eighty-fifth year, the museum more than tripled in size with the opening of the new John S. and James L. Knight Building, which adjoins the 1899 building. Spanning three centuries, like the museum’s collection, together they symbolize the museum’s dual role as preserver of the past and herald of the future. https://akronartmuseum.org/history/

The redesigned Art Sparks at the Speed Art Museum is a new interactive gallery for all ages. 15 hands-on learning stations help adults and children connect with art and with each other. Art Sparks is open the same hours as the Museum and is free with regular admission and on Sundays. The space is divided into three sections that focus on Noticing, Making, and Talking about art. Noticing: Visitors are introduced to different ways of seeing the world around them. The exhibits and activities focus on light and color activities, pattern, and composition. Talking: Visitors are encouraged to share their perspectives about art from the collection. Exhibits help visitors develop the vocabulary to discuss art and also gain a visual familiarity with the collection. https://www.gotolouisville.com/directory/art-sparks-at-the-speed-art-museum/

Marble House was built between 1888 and 1892 for Mr. and Mrs. William K. Vanderbilt. It was a summer house, or "cottage", as Newporters called them in remembrance of the modest houses of the early 19th century. But Marble House was much more; it was a social and architectural landmark that set the pace for Newport's subsequent transformation from a quiet summer colony of wooden houses to the legendary resort of opulent stone palaces. The house was designed by the architect Richard Morris Hunt, inspired by the Petit Trianon at Versailles. The cost of the house was reported in contemporary press accounts to be $11 million, of which $7 million was spent on 500,000 cubic feet of marble. Upon its completion, Mr. Vanderbilt gave the house to his wife as a 39th birthday present. The Vanderbilts divorced in 1895 and Alva married Oliver H.P. Belmont, moving down the street to Belcourt. After his death, she reopened Marble House, and had a Chinese Tea House built on the seaside cliffs, where she hosted rallies for women's right to vote. She sold the house to Frederick H. Prince in 1932. The Preservation Society acquired the house in 1963 from the Prince estate. In 2006, Marble House was designated a National Historic Landmark. http://www.newportmansions.org/explore/marble-house

Founded in 1914 the Art Gallery of Hamilton is the oldest and largest art museum in southwestern Ontario with a permanent collection that is recognized as one of the finest in Canada. Embracing Canadian historical, international and contemporary art, the collection consists of more than 10,000 works. You can see superb pieces by Alex Colville, Tom Thomson, the Group of Seven, Emily Carr, James Tissot, Jean-Léon Gérôme, Gustave Doré, Norval Morrisseau, Keith Haring, Edward Burtynsky, Kim Adams, or Tyler Tekatch, to name a few. Whether you’re looking for a specific artist or spending time in one of our galleries, you’re sure to find works that inspire, intrigue, challenge and engage you. The AGH is renowned for presenting outstanding exhibitions and complementary programming for visitors of all ages. There is so much to see and do! In addition to AGH Tours and AGH Talks, the Gallery offers studios for adults and kids , family activities, school programs, film programming, performances and more. https://www.artgalleryofhamilton.com/about-the-agh/from-the-director/

Experience a guided tour of this 40-room Italianate-style villa built in the 1830’s on Burlington Heights; the former site of a fortified military encampment established by the British in 1813. Once home to Sir Allan Napier MacNab, railway magnate, lawyer and Premier of the United Canadas (1854-1856) and his family, today Dundurn Castle tells the story of the family who lived above stairs and the servants who lived and worked below stairs to support their affluent lifestyle. Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall is the museum’s Patron and the great, great, great granddaughter of Sir Allan MacNab. https://www.hamilton.ca/attractions/hamilton-civic-museums/dundurn-national-historic-site

Fieldcote is a cultural heritage centre with an emphasis on the collection, preservation and exhibition of local history, the promotion of fine arts and the celebration of natural heritage through beautiful landscaped gardens and walking trails. Explore ‘Stories From the Edge’, an exhibition celebrating the history of Ancaster. Set on the edge of the Niagara Escarpment, with a bounty of water and resources, Ancaster has attracted humans since the retreat of the last glacier over 10,000 years ago. Using 31 stories and artifacts, one for every year the museum has been open, this exhibition offers snapshots of Ancaster’s history from the earliest human occupants to present day. https://www.hamilton.ca/attractions/hamilton-civic-museums/fieldcote-memorial-park-museum

The RISD Museum acquires, preserves, exhibits, and interprets works of art and design representing diverse cultures from ancient times to the present. Distinguished by its relationship to the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), the Museum educates and inspires artists, designers, students, scholars, and the general public through exhibitions, programs, and publications. RISD Museum's collection currently contains more than 100,000 works of art and design dating from ancient times to today including paintings, sculpture, decorative arts, costume and textiles, and furniture from all over the world. Of these objects, 3,352 of them are on view in the Museum now, 81,343 of them are available online, and there are 3,867 recent acquisitions. https://risdmuseum.org/

Toronto’s newest centre for arts, culture, food and entertainment. This national historic site includes 44 heritage buildings and numerous brick-lined courtyards. Explore the district’s many restaurants, art galleries, artisan boutiques, specialty retail stores and more. https://www.seetorontonow.com/listings/distillery-historic-district-the/

The world’s one and only! Experience the game that defines Canada and a sport that has been adopted by over seventy countries. Spread across 65,000 square feet, the Hall of Fame offers something for everyone: the finest collection of hockey artifacts at all levels of play from around the world; simulation games that challenge shooting, goalkeeping and broadcasting skills; themed exhibits dedicated to the game’s greatest players, teams and achievements; theatres; a replica NHL dressing room; an unrivalled selection of hockey-related merchandise and memorabilia within our gift store; and NHL trophies including, best of all, hands-on access to the STANLEY CUP. http://www.seetorontonow.com/listings/hockey-hall-of-fame/#sm.0017houyxdtier210nr1h126u6a73

The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) Collection features more than 100,000 great works of art, from cutting-edge contemporary to classic European masterpieces. View iconic paintings by the well-known Group of Seven as well as amazing art by established and emerging Indigenous, Inuit and Métis artists, sculptures, photographs, prints & drawings and so much more are on display in a beautiful building that itself is a work of art, with design details created by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry. http://www.seetorontonow.com/listings/art-gallery-of-ontario/#sm.0017houyxdtier210nr1h126u6a73

No trip to Toronto is complete without a visit to the Royal Ontario Museum — Canada’s largest museum showcasing art, culture, and nature from around the globe and across the ages. The ROM is home to a world-class collection of more than six million objects and specimens, featured in 40 gallery and exhibition spaces. Explore special exhibitions, as well as the Museum’s permanent collections of dinosaurs, South Asian art and culture, gems and minerals, ancient Egyptian treasures, biodiversity, and much more. http://www.seetorontonow.com/listings/royal-ontario-museum/#sm.0017houyxdtier210nr1h126u6a73

For over 60 years, the Oshawa Museum (OM) has celebrated its City’s history with engaging events, inspiring exhibits, and an immense collection of archival materials. Nestled on the shores of Lake Ontario in beautiful Lakeview Park, the OM tells the story of Oshawa from Indigenous inhabitants to present day. Home to Oshawa’s history, the OM is managed by the Oshawa Historical Society. OM collection is diverse and highlights include a photograph/postcard collection from the late Thomas Bouckley, newspaper microfilm dating to 1862, reference library featuring local history books, artifacts from the Henry, Robinson and Guy families and other early settlers, medical instrument collection, extensive camera collection, 7,000 item Grandview artifact collection and vast photograph collection depicting Oshawa events, places and personalities. The Oshawa Museum is an important heritage resource in Oshawa. As one of the few remaining heritage districts and Oshawa's only community museum, the four buildings that comprise the Museum are ideally situated to tell the story of Oshawa from its earliest native occupation to present times. http://www.oshawamuseum.org/index.html

The RMG houses a permanent collection of over 4,500 works, The Thomas Bouckley Collection, an outdoor public sculpture and 4 galleries of changing exhibitions, an art library and archives. Each of these collections tells the continuing story of Canadian modern and contemporary art. The Thomas Bouckley Collection was donated to the RMG by the late Thomas Bouckley, collector and history enthusiast of Oshawa. The computerized collection comprises over 3,000 historical photographs of Oshawa and Durham Region, spanning over 100 years. The collection is a remarkable resource for understanding and engaging with Oshawa’s local history. The RMG Library is the largest library in Durham Region devoted to fine art and the history of visual arts, and the largest and most comprehensive art library located between Toronto and Kingston. It is available to those interested in art for pleasure or serious research. Library resources include art books, artist monographs, artists’ files, clipping books, Canadian exhibition catalogues, slides, auction catalogues and an extensive journal collection. http://rmg.on.ca/about/

Step back in time and experience the home of the late R.S. McLaughlin, Canadian auto baron and founder of General Motors of Canada. Inspired by early 20th century Beaux-Arts design, this 15,000 square foot, 55-room mansion was built between 1915 and 1917. The art, architecture, gardens, landscaping and original furnishings are all faithfully preserved in this National Historic Site. Immerse yourself in the beauty and history of this National Historic Site through daily site experiences, a variety of special learning opportunities, and events that will engage your senses. From Mansion & Garden experiences to afternoon teas, there’s always something unique to experience at Parkwood. https://www.parkwoodestate.com/

Agnes Etherington Art Centre is a research‐intensive art museum located on the historic campus of Queen’s University. It illuminates the great artistic traditions of the past and the innovations of the present through year-round programs of exhibitions and outreach activities staged across eight beautiful galleries, the Biéler Studio, and assorted public spaces including the gracious period rooms of the historic Etherington House. As a space of display, innovation and exchange, the Agnes is an experiential learning space for diverse disciplines at Queen’s, and the public gallery for Kingston region. Its superb collections—numbering over 17,000 works―include cutting edge contemporary art and fine examples of Canadian historical art, Indigenous art and artifacts, and material culture including an unusual collection of Canadian Historical Dress and the Lang Collection of African Art. The Bader Collection, focusing on Rembrandt and his school, centres on more than 200 paintings from the Dutch Golden Age, including one portrait and three beautiful character studies by Rembrandt. https://agnes.queensu.ca/about/profile/

Oshawa Little Theatre provides an increasingly diverse audience and its theatre practitioners with consistently high-quality, excellent-value live performances, education and mentoring in an outstanding performing arts facility. http://oshawalittletheatre.com/about/

Step back in time and experience 19th-Century military life at Fort Henry. As one of Ontario’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Fort Henry is a hotbed of historic activity. Take a guided tour, fire a rifle, sit in on a class in a Victorian schoolroom, watch a parade of traditional marching music, and stick around in the evening for a dramatic reenactment during the Sunset Ceremony. Visit Fort Henry throughout the year as it plays host to a number of Kingston’s favourite events like the YGK Craft Beer Fest, Cannonball Crush, and Fort Fright. Fort Henry is a can’t-miss stop during your time in Kingston. https://www.visitkingston.ca/see-do/fort-henry-kingston-national-historic-site/