Road trip from Fresno to Merced

The Fresno Art Museum’s focus is on contemporary and modern art, photography, ethnographic, and cultural exhibitions that reflect and celebrate the diverse population of the San Joaquin Valley. Exhibitions are curated in-house by Museum staff or are specially chosen traveling exhibitions and most change twice per year. The artists exhibited range from emerging and established local artists to artists from around the globe. Since 1988 FAM‘s Council of 100 annually recognizes a late-career, internationally-known woman artist with a Distinguished Woman Artist award and exhibition. FAM has a collection of Pre-Columbian artworks from Mexico and the Andes on permanent display and holds a permanent collection of over 3,500 works. PLEASE CHECK OUR WEBSITE FOR HOURS . We close for exhibition change-over every January and late June through July, and occasionally close for special events.

This museum was once the home of a Civil War-era surgeon.

Take a tour off Highway 99 and visit Fresno's best kept secret. *A hand-built network of underground rooms, courtyards and passageways reminiscent of the ancient catacombs. *Unique fruit producing trees, shrubs, and vines growing underground - some over 90 years old! *Ancient Roman architecture - arches, vaults and stone-built walls. *Underground micro-climates - temperature variations of 10 to 30 degrees! *Underground home of Sicilian visionary and self-taught artist/builder Baldassare Forestiere.