The Phillips Collection Museum

Address: 1600 21st St NW, Washington, DC 20009, United States

Website: https://www.phillipscollection.org

Hours: Tue-Sun 10:00am-5:00pm, closed Mondays (hours may vary for special exhibitions)

Admission: Main admission around $15-$18 for adults; discounts for students and seniors; free admission on certain days (check museum calendar)

The Phillips Collection is an art museum in Washington, D.C., founded in 1921 by Duncan Phillips and housed in adjoining townhouses in the Dupont Circle area. It is widely described as America’s first museum of modern art.

The museum’s presentation emphasizes an intimate, domestic viewing experience with permanent works by Impressionist, Post-Impressionist and modern artists displayed alongside rotating temporary exhibitions. The collection includes important works across European and American modern art movements and is organized in a series of small interlinked galleries.

The Phillips occupies a group of early 20th-century residential buildings on 21st Street NW, a short walk from Dupont Circle and other central D.C. cultural institutions.

• Founding and building: Founded by collector Duncan Phillips in 1921 and located in a group of early 20th-century townhouses in the Dupont Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C.
• Collection character: Known for its intimate, domestic gallery spaces and a collection that combines late 19th- and 20th-century European and American modern and contemporary works.

Located in the Dupont Circle neighborhood. From Metro take the Red Line to Dupont Circle and walk northwest (about 10 minutes). Street parking is limited; nearby paid garages are available.

• Buy timed-entry tickets online to avoid lines - the collection rooms are small and capacity is limited.
• Focus on the founding Phillips bequest: look for Renoir's 'Luncheon of the Boating Party' and the unique display of modernist painting that the museum arranged by intimate room ensembles.
• Skip a weekday afternoon class-free moment for quieter viewing; the Phillips is deliberately domestic in scale and benefits from slow looking.