What’s your all-time favorite art museum?

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Art museums often leave lasting impressions. Some become places of personal pilgrimage, sources of inspiration, or unforgettable first encounters with masterpieces. We asked seven artists to name the one museum that stands out above all others for them. What’s yours? Tell us below!

“The Sorolla Museum, in Madrid, weighs in as my all-time favorite. It goes way beyond a plenary collection of the artist’s work. This was Sorolla’s home, gardens, and studio. Many rooms show how he lived with his family, including furniture and other artifacts. When I visit the museum, I always have this romantic feeling that I’m a guest in the artist’s home … that Joaquín and Clotilda might appear around the corner at any moment to say Hola! Bienvenida!”

—W. Truman Hosner

“I live outside Washington, D.C., so I do have a real fondness for the National Gallery of Art, but my absolute favorite is The Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York City. I went to art school at Pratt Institute, and being able to leave art history class and go see many of the actual paintings from the textbook was amazing. It’s also where I discovered my favorite figurative painter, William-Adolphe Bouguereau, who was not, incidentally, included in that textbook.”

—Matthew Bird

“I love the Van Gogh Museum, in Amsterdam. To experience the whole trajectory of his career, feel the energy of his marks, and see the sheer volume of his creations—it’s emotional and awe-inspiring no matter how many times I visit.”

—Suhita Shirodkar

“The Saint Louis Art Museum, which is free to the public, is located in one of the most beautiful city parks in the country. I introduced my daughters to this wonderful place as children, and they still find it amazing as adults.”

—Brenda Gilliam

“I love the very personal collections and the buildings of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, in Boston.”

—Catherine Reurs

“The Musée d’Orsay, in Paris, offers a wonderful mix of art in a beautiful and unique space.”

—Denise Holdren McKenna

“My heart belongs to the Detroit Institute of Arts. Whether looking at art from the past or present, this is a place where I can get happily lost.”

—Jen Archie

“Hunter Museum of American Art, in Chattanooga, Tenn.”

—Rachel Ulven

“Impossible to pick just one … but I’d say my favorite on the East coast, and that would be the Yale University Art Gallery. Their collection is magnificent!”

—Fernanda Zamera

“My favorite museum is the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, in Kleinburg, Ontario. It’s known as the spiritual home of the Group of Seven and Tom Thomson, and is also the burial ground for several of these artists: “Of the 10 artists who were members of the Group of Seven, six–Arthur Lismer, Frederick Varley, Lawren Harris, Frank Johnston, A.J. Casson and A.Y. Jackson–are buried in a small cemetery on the McMichael grounds.” Tom Thomson’s “studio shack” has been saved and reinstalled on the grounds, and nature trails surround the buildings, allowing visitors to literally walk in the footsteps of many of these giants who painted on the property.

—Sandra Woods

Need a little armchair inspiration? Check out these museums from the comfort of your own home.

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