A popular city for tourists, San Francisco showcases a wide range of architectural styles and is home to the famous, now-abandoned prison on Alcatraz island. Many of its neighborhoods, including Union Square and Fisherman's Wharf, are known around the world. Visitors also stop by to watch the San Francisco Giants play baseball, and the 49ers play football.

ART GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS

With more than fifty museums in the city spanning a wide range of fields, culture-lovers will find there is never a dull moment.

• The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco features one of the most well-rounded collections of Asian art in the world. Much of the collection housed within its walls was donated by a Chicago millionaire in the 1950s - more than 7,000 pieces. In 2003, the museum moved from a wing of a larger museum to its own space in what was once the San Francisco city library.

• Spend a fun few hours in the Cartoon Art Museum. Founded in 1984, the museum holds an impressive 6,000 pieces in in the permanent collection, including comic books and strips, and stills from animated films. Originally a travelling museum that exhibited wherever there was space, the museum has since found a home in the South of Market district. The museum also awards the "Sparkly" for lifetime achievement to select cartoonists and animators.

• If you need a break from traditional art methods, check out the Museum of Performance + Design. Focused primarily on preserving local performing arts materials from the mid-19th century to today, the museum offers educational programs and archival services to the community and art institutions as well. In addition, the museum is the home to the archives of several prominent local organizations including the San Francisco Ballet and the San Francisco Opera.

• The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is the home of an internationally lauded collection of modern and contemporary art, holding more than 29,000 sculptures, paintings, photographs and designs. The museum opened in 1935 with a gifted collection of 36 pieces. Since, the museum has held exhibits showcasing the work of Henri Matisse, Jackson Pollock, Jeff Koons and William de Kooning. A planned expansion closed the museum in 2013. It will reopen in 2016 with twice as much gallery space.

• See the visual culture of Mexico at The Mexican Museum, an associate of the Smithsonian Institution. The venue opened in 1975 and has a permanent collection of more than 14,000 works of art from the pre-Hispanic and Colonial periods through to Contemporary.

• New Langton Arts
• Wells Fargo History Museum
• Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
• Randall Museum
• Ripley's Believe It or Not!
• Museum of the African Diaspora
• Museum of Craft and Design
• Legion of Honor
• de Young Museum
• Chinese Culture Center

San Francisco, California

ARTISTIC INSTITIUTIONS

• At the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, students are offered a variety of 2- and 4-year degree and Associate Art degrees in any of 26 fields including fashion design, graphic design, digital media, interior design and jewelry design. The private college boasts successful graduates who now work in the entertainment industry, and has built a community of more than 60,000 graduates since it was founded in 1969.

• The California College of the Arts offers programs in architecture, design, writing and visual art, and has existed for over 100 years. Each year, it takes in approximately 2,000 undergraduate and graduate students investigating more than 20 specific fields including Ceramics, Film, Metal Arts, Textiles, Sculpture and Literature. Located in the Potrero Hill neighborhood, the school is close to Mission Bay Park and not far from Yerba Buena Island.

• San Francisco Art Institute is a contemporary art school that offers undergraduate and graduate programs in paintings, sculpture, photography and printmaking. Founded in 1874, the institution features a photography department founded by the well known photographer Ansel Adams and a painting department that was significant in the development of Abstract Expressionism. The rooftop terrace serves as an inspirational outlook with excellent views of the city.

• In 2005, the San Francisco School of Digital Filmmaking opened to teach prospective directors and videographers the art of filmmaking. In addition to short-term programs, the school also offers 12- and 18-month certificates. Students learn about narrative, documentary and movie genres, as well as the technical knowledge the profession requires. At the end of their training, they have the opportunity to work as crew on a feature-length film.

Other Art Schools and Classes in San Francisco

• Academy of Art University
• University of San Francisco (various art programs including Art History, Performance, Visual Art and Architecture)
• The Art Institute of California - San Francisco
• San Francisco State University (Art, Art History, Apparel Design, Drama)
• Sharon Art Studio
• Artworks Fine Art Studio
• Jean Henry School of Art
• San Francisco Advertising School

NATIVE ARTISTS

San Francisco is home to a great number of visual, theatrical and musical artists.

• Lenore Chinn is a painter of realism whose work is influenced by her Chinese ancestry.

• Sculptor Ruth Asawa has works in the Whitney and Guggenheim museums.

• World famous photographer Ansel Adams is best known for his black and white landscape photographs of America.

• Legendary film director Clint Eastwood is a San Francisco native.

• Actors Leslie Mann, Danny Glover, Liev Schreiber and Alicia Silverstone were all born in the "City by the Bay".

ART AND CULTURAL EVENTS

Annual Events

• Running for more than 12 years, the San Francisco Noir City Film Festival showcases film screening of the best of the Noir film genre over the course of ten days in January. Each year features a theme around which more than 20 titles are selected and shown.

• SF IndieFest is an independent film festival that collects and screens shorts, documentaries, animated and feature-length films by up and coming indie filmmakers. The festival has been running for more than 15 years, and awards cash prizes to the best films in various categories.

• Each year for nearly 3 decades, the The San Francisco Tribal and Textile Arts Show brings together nearly 100 exhibitors from galleries around the world to showcase the works of Asian, African, Latin American, Oceanic and Native American artists and craftsmen.

• See a wide variety of technological inventions, products, fashion, architecture and more at San Francisco Design Week, held each June in venues across the city. The event offers over 60 studio tours and 75 events hosted by world-renowned designers, innovators and entrepreneurs.

• Each August since 2008, the Outside Lands Festival has offered up a hearty serving of music, food, and art. Running for three days, the event takes place in Golden Gate Park, which becomes a bustling center of craft and food stalls, comedic acts, speakers, musicians and much more.

Other Events and Sights to See

• Explore Golden Gate Park, Chinatown and Union Square for the real San Fran experience.
• Take the family to see Mickey at the Walt Disney Family Museum.
• Get in touch with nature at the Botanical Gardens and Yerba Buena Gardens.
• Check out the old Alcatraz prison.
• Hit up the San Francisco Zoo and the Aquarium of the Bay.
• Visit beautiful Angel Island.

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