I love to travel, but on a college student’s budget it isn’t always possible. However, I would be depriving myself if I didn’t visit a few of the most amazing and engaging museums and art spaces in the county. I’ve discovered these places through friends, books, professors, and my own curiosity. Granted I haven’t been to any of these places yet, but I promise sometime in my lifetime I will!

The top 5 art places and spaces in the U.S to visit: 

1. The Rothko Chapel in Houston, Texas. Mark Rothko, one of the most influential painters of the post war era, was commissioned by philanthropists John and Dominique de Menil to create works for the space. In result Rothko created 14 large paintings that hang on the walls of this chapel, museum, and forum. This space is meditative, reflective, and inspirational. 

2. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, Massachusetts (as you know from my last post I’m enamored with this museum from the book The Art Forger.) The founder, Isabella Stewart Gardner, was a patron for the arts and is one of the coolest women of the 20th century. In short, I wish we were alive in the same time period so I could be her best friend. Isabella Stewart Gardner lived a life of travel, adventure, and art. I’ve read she had a great sense of humor and once said “Don’t spoil a good story by telling the truth.” And one of the best parts of the museum, if your name is Isabella or you visit on your birthday – you get free admission.

3. The Lightning Field in Quemado, New Mexico. Created by Walter De Maria, The Lightning Field is a work of land art in the desert of New Mexico. There are 400 stainless steel poles in the ground 220 feet apart. Visitors are encourage to stay overnight there only between May 1st through October 31st to get the full experience. Another Walter De Maria masterpiece, The New York Earth Room.

4. MASS MoCA is Massachusetts’ Museum of Contemporary Art located in North Adams, Mass. Originally a manufacturing site and later a textile mill, the space was transformed into a museum and officially opened in 1999. Listed on the National Register MASS MoCA is filled with amazing art and history.  Today the exhibition space is over 200,000 square feet.

5. Spiral Jetty created by Robert Smithson in 1970 is located in Great Salt Lake, Utah. As you may have guessed by now, I really enjoy site specific art. For Spiral Jetty, Smithson used over six thousand tons of black basalt rock and earth.

I’m always looking for new art places and spaces to add to my must visit list – what are some of your favorites?