Unless you’re a local who knows its history, visitors who pass by the De Young Museum might think an abstract spaceship had crash-landed into Golden Gate Park. Providing San Franciscans with a never-ending debate over aesthetics, the building is intended to unify modern art and architecture with the natural landscape.  Meant to oxidize and turn pale green the way the Statue of Liberty has done, the museum’s copper mesh exterior will eventually blend in with the surrounding eucalyptus trees.

Before you even enter the De Young Museum, explore over five acres of native landscaping, in which you can wanarden, koi ponds, waterfalls, and the Andy Goldsworthy “Faultline” installation in the courtyard.

Like any great museum, the De Young features an impressive permanent collection: Ancient Teotihuacan stone murals from Mexico, the finest collection of American paintings, African and Oceanic art, and The Anderson Graphics Art Collection.  Great exhibitions have included Yves Saint Laurent, Andy Warhol, Chihuly, and most recently King Tutankhamun.  You can also explore the 144 ft. observation tower that provides views of the park, the new California Academy of Sciences building across the lawn, the Golden Gate Bridge, and downtown.

Whether you love the building and what it contains, or hate its aesthetics, the architects and curators have obviously done their jobs – eliciting reactions.