City/neighborhood: University/Montlake

Hours: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday through Sunday, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Thursday

Parking: Free parking, Paid parking, Street parking

Disabled access: No obstacles to access

Related info: Gallery Guide
Neighborhood art walks

Founded in 1927, The University of Washington's Henry has always been one of Seattle's coolest museums, but the historic brick building decorated with the names of famous artists became even cooler after a major renovation in 1997. Known as the Northwest's pre-eminent contemporary art museum, the Henry tends to show political, experimental and technological works, with a special emphasis on photography and digital media. It has a permanent collection of more than 20,000 late 19th- and 20th-century paintings and photographs, as well as textile/costume and new-media collections.

Through hosting prestigious traveling shows by famous artists as diverse as Warhol, Matisse and Rodin, and by creating cutting-edge exhibitions that comment on contemporary culture, the museum hopes to fire up complex dialogues on esthetics, visual art traditions, politics and culture. It also offers lectures on current exhibitions and visual arts topics.

By Paysha Stockton
Special to NWsource