The Guide to Museums Free-for-All in Los Angeles

SoCal Museums presents the annual Museums Free-for-All on Sunday, February 22. Nearly 30 museums—spanning art, cultural heritage, natural history and science—will open their doors and invite visitors to attend free of charge. NOTE: The Free-for-All is for general admission at participating museums only and does not apply to specially ticketed exhibitions. Visit individual museum websites for hours, directions and other visitor information.

Museums Free-for-All is also a reminder that free visitor days are available year-round at museums across Los Angeles. Following are the Discover LA guides to free museums and free museum days. While museums from Santa Barbara to San Diego will participate in the event, this list focuses on L.A.-area museums. For the full list of participants, visit the Museums Free-for-All website. 

Opened in September 2021, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures (6067 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles 90036) houses more than 13 million objects in a 300,000 square-foot campus designed by Pritzker Prize winning architect Renzo Piano. Exhibitions currently on view include Jaws: The Exhibition, Director's Inspiration: Bong Joon Ho and Barbie to Anna Karenina: The Cinematic Worlds of Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer.  

Tickets for the Free-for-All will be available on a first come, first served basis. Highlights include:

• Studio Ghibli's PONYO, which opens on Valentine's Day and includes items never-before viewed in North America. 
• Jaws: The Exhibition is a massive, behind-the-scenes look at the at the 1975 blockbuster film that includes interactive elements. 
• Sound of Metal (2020) screens in the David Geffen Theater at 2 p.m. Reserve a ticket. 
• The museum's signature restaurant, Fanny's will be serving up tacos and more on the Walt Disney Family Piazza from 12-5 p.m.
• Learn about tactile filmmaking at the drop-in workshop. 

Located in Griffith Park, the Autry Museum of the American West (4700 Western Heritage Way, Los Angeles 90027) is dedicated to exploring and sharing the stories, experiences, and perceptions of the diverse peoples of the American West. The Autry’s collection of more than 500,000 pieces of art and artifacts - including the collection of the Southwest Museum of the American Indian - is one of the largest and most significant in the United States.

Exhibitions currently on view include Future Imaginaries: Indigenous Art, Fashion, Technology, Creative Continuities: Family, Pride and Community in Native Art and Imagined Wests. 

Advance registration for the Free-for-All is required. Highlights include: 

• The Autry's latest exhibition, Desert Dreams and Coastal Currents, which opens on February 14. 
• Museum tours at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
• Family Play Space, open from 10 a.m.- 4 p.m.

The Broad (221 S. Grand Ave, Los Angeles 90012) is a spectacular contemporary art museum built by philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad. The museum is home to 2,000 works of art in the Broad collection, which is among the most prominent holdings of postwar and contemporary art in the world.

Two of Yayoi Kusama’s famed Infinity Mirror Rooms are in the Broad collection: Infinity Mirrored Room—The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away (2013) requires advance reservations; Longing for Eternity (2017) is on view on the third floor and doesn't require reservations.

Advance reservations for the Free-for-All are encouraged. Highlights: 

• The Broad is offering free entrance to special exhibition Robert Therrien: This is a Story on February 22. Be sure to reserve your spot in advance of your visit. 

Located at Exposition Park in Downtown LA, the California African American Museum (600 State Dr, Los Angeles 90037) exists to research, collect, preserve and interpret the history, art and culture of African Americans. The museum's permanent collection houses 4,000 objects that span landscape painting and portraiture, modern and contemporary art, historical objects and print materials, and mixed-media artworks.

Exhibitions at CAAM during the Free-for-All include:

• American Artist Shaper of God: Apple Valley Autonomy
• J.J. Anderson Sometimes I Feel Like I am Almost Home
• Dear Mazie
• The Black Interior: Imagining Home in the Permanent Collection
• Sage Ni'Ja Whitson These Walking Glories
• Sadie Barnette How to Fly

Officially opened in October 2009, the Columbia Memorial Space Center (12400 Columbia Way, Downey 90242) is a 20,000 square-foot museum located on the site of the former Boeing plant (previously North American Rockwell / North American Aviation) where all of the Apollo Command and Service Modules were built and the Space Shuttle was conceived. The two-story building features a Robotics Lab, High Definition Computer Lab, and a wide range of interactive exhibits that educate visitors about Space Shuttle operations, living and working on the International Space Station, exploration of our solar system, aerospace engineering, and the range of fields of study and jobs related to human and robotic space exploration. Although the museum is normally closed on Sundays, it will be open on February 22 from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. 

Located on Museum Row in the Miracle Mile, Craft Contemporary (5814 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles 90036) focuses on contemporary art made from craft media and processes. The museum presents dynamic exhibitions by established and emerging artists and designers who are often underrepresented in larger art institutions. Through its programs and events, Craft Contemporary offers creative opportunities for the public to participate in hands-on workshops led by professional artists. Craft Contemporary cultivates an environment for everyone to deepen their relationship to art, creativity, and one another.

Highlights include: 

• Current exhibition Material Curiosity By Design which shows the historic, mid-20th century designs of Evelyn and Jerome Ackerman alongside works from contemporary artists. 
• Artist Vince Skelly's Makers-in-Residence exhibition, which begins on February 11, will feature a recreation of his studio on site. 
• One of LA's best museum gift stores, the Craft Contemporary Shop features an expertly curated, constantly-changing array of beautiful handmade items from skilled artisans.

The original Forest Lawn location, Forest Lawn - Glendale has been a Southern California landmark since 1906. It has a world-renowned art museum, extraordinary statuary, and the Hall of Crucifixion-Resurrection, which is home to two of the largest religious paintings in the Western hemisphere.

Founded in 1952, the Forest Lawn Museum (1712 S Glendale Ave, Glendale 91205) is committed to enriching the community through the educational presentation of artwork that focuses on history, culture and religion.

Part of UCLA’s School of the Arts and Architecture, the Fowler Museum (308 Charles E Young Dr N, Los Angeles 90024) explores global arts and cultures with an emphasis on works from Africa, Asia, the Pacific, and the Americas—past and present. RSVP for highlights for that include: 

• Curator-led tour of Fire Kinship: Southern California Native Ecology and Art

• Screening of trailer for MAATHAAW and panel discussion

• Demonstration and open workshop with California Indian Basketweaving Association

Perched on a 110-acre hilltop above Brentwood, the Getty Center (1200 Getty Center Dr, Los Angeles 90049) is world-renowned for its collection of European and American art from medieval times to the present. The museum was designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Richard Meier, who created a campus with Modern design, open spaces and spectacular views. The 134,000 square-foot Central Garden, created by artist Robert Irwin, is located at the heart of the Getty Center.

Advance reservations are required for the Free-for-All. Highlights include: 

• Center Art, Architecture and Garden Tours at 11 a.m., 12 p.m., 1 p.m. and 2 p.m.
• Beginnings: The Story of Creation in the Middle Ages
• How to Be a Guerrilla Girl

Widely regarded as one of the world’s leading cultural venues for emerging artists, the Hammer Museum in Westwood (10899 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles 90024) was founded in 1990 by Armand Hammer as a venue to exhibit his extensive art collection. The Hammer houses a permanent collection with masterpieces by Rembrandt, Van Gogh and Sargent, as well as one of the world’s finest collections of works on paper.  Highlights for Free Museum Day include: 

• Made in LA 2025, the group exhibition featuring 28 local artists, which runs through March 1. 
• Five Centuries of Works on Paper: The Grunwald Center at 70 includes art from the likes of Rembrandt, Picasso, Ruscha and many more. 
• Matisse Inventing and Adapting, a talk from art historian John Walsh at 3 p.m.
• Giannis in the Cities screening with filmmaker Eleni Alexandrakis in person at 7 p.m.

Opened in September 2017, the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (1717 E. 7th St, Los Angeles 90021) is housed in a renovated industrial building in Downtown LA. Founded in 1984 as the Santa Monica Museum of Art, ICA LA’s 12,700 square-foot facility features 7,500 square feet of exhibition space, as well as areas for public programs, offices, and a café. Current exhibitions include: 

• Sándra Vasquez de la Horra The Awake Volcanos

• Samar Al Summary Excavating the Sky

• Liz Hernández Donde piso, crecen cosas (Where I Step, Things Grow)

• Reading is Transcendental 

Located on Museum Row at one of the world’s most famous fossil sites, the La Brea Tar Pits Museum houses a collection of five million Ice Age fossils that spans 55,000 years of history. In October 2022, the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) named the La Brea Tar Pits one of the first 100 locations on its list of Geological Heritage Sites - the only urban location in the world to receive the prestigious designation.

Advance reservations are required for the Free-for-All.

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles 90036) is the largest art museum in the western United States, with a collection that includes more than 142,000 objects that span 6,000 years of history - dating from antiquity to the present, encompassing the geographic world and nearly the entire history of art.

Free, timed-entry tickets are required for the Free-for-All. Highlights include: 

• Sueño Perros: A Film Installation by Alejandro G. Iñarritu opens on February 22.
• Village Square: Gifts of Modern Art from the Pearlman Collection to the Brooklyn Museum, LACMA and MoMA opens on February 22.

• Fútbol Is Life: Animated Sportraits by Lyndon J. Barrios, Sr. opens on February 15

   

Renowned as one of the nation's premier centers of Mexican American culture, LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes (501 N Main St, Los Angeles 90012) features interactive exhibits and exciting programs that invite visitors to explore as well as contribute to the ongoing story of Mexican Americans in LA and beyond. Located near the site where Los Angeles was founded in 1781, LA Plaza's 2.2-acre campus includes two historic and renovated buildings (the Vickrey-Brunswig Building and Plaza House) surrounded by 30,000 square feet of public gardens. Highlights for February 22 include: 

• A Great Day in East LA: Celebrando the Eastside Sound

   

The Museum of Contemporary Art (250 S. Grand Ave, Los Angeles 90012) is the only artist-founded museum in Los Angeles. MOCA houses one of the most compelling collections of contemporary art in the world, comprising roughly 7,000 objects, and has a diverse history of ground-breaking, historically-significant exhibitions.

Both Downtown LA locations of MOCA will be participating in the Free-for-All: Grand Avenue and The Geffen Contemporary in Little Tokyo (152 N. Central Avenue, Los Angeles 90012). Advance reservations are required for the Free-for-All. Highlights include: 

• Free admission to special exhibition Monuments (Geffen Contemporary)
• Diary of Flowers: Artists and Their Worlds  (MOCA Grand Ave.)

The Skirball Cultural Center (2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles 90049) is guided by the Jewish tradition of welcoming the stranger and inspired by the American democratic ideals of freedom and equality. Open to the public since 1996, the Skirball has established itself as one of the world's most dynamic Jewish cultural institutions and among the leading cultural venues in LA.

Advance tickets are strongly recommended for the Free-for-All. Highlights include: 

• Jack Kirby: Heroes and Humanity, which closes on March 1
• Draw Them In, Paint Them Out: Trenton Doyle Hancock Confronts Philip Guston, which closes on March 1

Founded by Justinian Jampol, an LA native and scholar of modern European history, The Wende Museum (10808 Culver Blvd, Culver City 90230) houses a collection of more than 100,000 artifacts, archives and personal histories that is recognized as an unparalleled resource for insight into the Eastern perspective of the Cold War. Highlights for February 22 include: 

• Samizdat Sundays Workshop, a hands-on textile workshop at 10:30 a.m.

• Music/Words LA: Curated by Inna Faliks at 2 p.m.