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SAM’s Collection

Browse 25,000 works of art

From antiquity to the present, paintings to porcelain, and baskets to belt masks, SAM’s permanent collection represents global cultures and historical perspectives.


Learning resources

Explore resources that can enhance learning and teaching about SAM's collection.

SAM Stories

Perspectives on SAM’s collection art and artists.

What’s on

Farm to Table: Art, Food, and Identity in the Age of Impressionism

Oct 23 2025–Jan 18 2026

Seattle Art Museum

Suchitra Mattai: she walked in reverse and found their songs

Apr 9–Jul 20 2025

Seattle Asian Art Museum

Ai, Rebel: The Art and Activism of Ai Weiwei

Mar 12–Sep 7 2025

Seattle Art Museum

Following Space: Thaddeus Mosley & Alexander Calder

Nov 20 2024–Jun 1 2025

Seattle Art Museum

Samantha Yun Wall: 2024 Betty Bowen Award Winner

Opening Spring 2026

Seattle Art Museum

Tariqa Waters: Venus is Missing

May 7 2025–Jan 5 2026

Seattle Art Museum

Joyce J. Scott: Walk a Mile in My Dreams

Oct 17 2024–Jan 19 2025

Seattle Art Museum

Selections from the Shirley Family Calder Collection

Nov 20 2024–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Meot: Korean Art from the Frank Bayley Collection

Aug 28 2024–Mar 9 2025

Seattle Asian Art Museum

Bethany Collins: At Sea

Nov 14 2024–May 4 2025

Seattle Art Museum

Jacob Lawrence: American Storyteller

Jun 28 2024–Jan 5 2025

Seattle Art Museum

Art and Commerce

Jul 27 2024–Jan 12 2025

Seattle Art Museum

Diego Cibelli: Fiori dei Miei Habiti / La Montagne Enchantée

May 31 2024–May 10 2026

Seattle Art Museum

Lessons from the Institute of Empathy

Mar 31 2018–Oct 5 2025

Seattle Art Museum

American Art: The Stories We Carry

Oct 20 2022–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Yirrkala: Art from Australia’s Top End

May 10 2024–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Impressionisms: The Global Nineteenth Century

Mar 27 2024–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Chronicles of a Global East

Oct 20 2022–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

SAM on Paper: Rembrandt’s Etchings

Mar 27 2024–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Boundless: Stories of Asian Art

Feb 8 2020–ongoing

Seattle Asian Art Museum

Pacific Species

Dec 22 2022–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Conscious Constructions

Apr 29 2011–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Art and Life Along the Northwest Coast

Nov 26 2014–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Deities & Demons: Supernatural In Japanese Art

Oct 20 2022–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Cosmic Beings in Mesoamerican and Andean Art

Nov 10 2018–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Porcelain Room

May 5 2007–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

Echo

May 29 2014–ongoing

Olympic Sculpture Park

John Grade: Middle Fork

Feb 10 2017–Feb 2 2025

Seattle Art Museum

Only Connect: The Art of Devotion

Apr 29 2011–ongoing

Seattle Art Museum

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Art & Artists FAQ

Search SAM's collection to access the more than 25,000 objects in our holdings. If you cannot find what you are looking for, please email us at research@seattleartmuseum.org.

Please contact libraries@seattleartmuseum.org. If you need label text for an object that is not on view or you can’t find what you need through SAM's libraries, please contact collection@seattleartmuseum.org.

Please review SAM's Rights & Resources for information related to image reproduction. If you cannot find the information you are looking for, please use the Image Rights & Reproductions Request form for more information.