Not the French award for contributions to the state, but an art museum in San Francisco perched on top of a hill facing the Pacific Ocean on two sides. It’s a classic art museum with masterpieces like Fruit and Game by Jan Fyt and pieces by Anthony van Dyck. Even my best buddy Peter Paul Reubens has a little corner here. I enjoyed looking at Fabergé enamels, but I still like his eggs more. At the end of the corridor that progresses through the centuries in chronological order is impressionism. I spotted the Monet at the end of the corridor and resisted the urge to walk straight to it because it’s worth taking the time to soak in the historical changes of Western art.
The museum is a gold standard of explaining the sometimes troubled historical context of cross-cultural depictions. For example, there is a bust of a Chinese man by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux. The display goes into detail explaining which groups of Chinese were present in France in the late 19th century and why they were there. It also explains how the French stereotype of Chinese appearances with the Manchu Qing Dynasty-mandated braid came from.
I’m slightly disappointed at the Rodin Gallery, which pales in comparison to Philadelphia’s Rodin Museum. It had the icons, but it didn’t explain how Rodin got there and his obsession with depicting hands. It does also have a whole wing on baroque art, but it’s focused mostly on Spanish and Italian instead of German art.
Be sure to call ahead to make sure you don’t accidentally pay for tickets for a free day like I did. The staff were very helpful and refunded my money, but better to check first anyhow.
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