SAM has been the center for world-class visual arts in the Pacific Northwest since 1933. Visit SAM to see a museum carved into the city, as much a part of Seattle's landscape and personality as the coffee, rain, mountains, Pike Place Market, and the Space Needle. Our three distinct locations celebrate the region's position as a crossroads where east meets west, urban meets natural, local meets global. Our collections, installations, special exhibitions, and programs feature art from around the world and build bridges between cultures and centuries.

In the heart of downtown Seattle, light-filled galleries invite you to wander through our collections, temporary installations, and special exhibitions from around the world. Our collections include Asian, African, Ancient American, Ancient Mediterranean, Islamic, European, Oceanic, Asian, American, modern and contemporary art, and decorative arts and design. Visitors especially enjoy our remarkable Native American galleries and our exceptional collection of Australian Aboriginal art.

SAM connects art to life.

Through art, the Seattle Art Museum enriches lives and engages diverse communities. 

As the leading visual art institution in the Pacific Northwest, SAM draws on its global collections, powerful exhibitions, and dynamic programs to provide unique educational resources benefiting the Seattle region, the Pacific Northwest, and beyond.

VISION

The Seattle Art Museum aspires to be a great art museum for the 21st century. SAM is defined by its outstanding collections, dynamic and inspiring programs, and innovative uses of technology to engage audiences and supporters with great art. As an anchor institution in a forward-thinking global city, the Seattle Art Museum aspires to embody and inspire the Seattle ?region’s dynamism and enhance its global profile while contributing to a healthy and vibrant community and enriching the lives of its citizens.
 

CORE VALUES

CREATIVITY
We bring art into people’s lives and help them understand its unique power to inspire creative thinking, which is crucial to understanding and solving our world’s complex problems.

EXCELLENCE
We build and create collections, exhibitions, and public programs of the highest quality and excellence.

ENGAGEMENT
We engage our audiences through dialogue that is mutually beneficial and enlightening in a spirit of mutual respect.

DIVERSITY
Knowing that organizations that embrace and embody diversity are stronger and more effective, we invite and respect many viewpoints and experiences, as we strive to develop and sustain a diverse staff and board, and showcase art from the world’s diverse cultures.

ACCESSIBILITY
We work to lower economic and physical barriers as well as barriers to understanding, so that art is accessible to everyone. We recognize the importance of excellent customer service in making art accessible to all.

STEWARDSHIP
Transparency and careful stewardship of resources, including collections, staff, volunteers, facilities, investments, and institutional records, are essential to the fulfillment of our mission.

Because SAM’s collection is our greatest resource and legacy to the future, we care for it and share it with the public through scholarship and interpretation, creative installation, conservation, and programming.