Hirshhorn Museum

Lonely Planet review

The Smithsonian's cylindrical modern art museum exhibits an impressive array of 19th- and 20th-century sculpture and canvases in chronological fashion, from modernism's early days to the present day. Highlights include sculpture by Rodin, Brancusi, Calder and Moore, plus canvases by Bacon, Miró, O'Keeffe, Warhol, Stella and Kiefer.

The museum gift shop is small, but has an excellent collection of books on modern art.

Standout recent additions include Hiroshi Sugimoto's eerie black-and-white gelatin silver print on paper, entitled World Trade Center . Although created in 1997, the work has a dark foreshadowing quality to its grainy composition.

Outside and across Jefferson Dr, the sunken Sculpture Garden is a beautifully landscaped setting with a rich collection of works, like Rodin's The Burghers of Calais . The sculpture garden is a great place to go on a date (a favorite with young local lovers) - wander past twisted pieces of iron and kiss behind the groomed green bushes. Seriously, it's romantic.

The Hirshhorn hosts a wide range of tours, lectures and workshops, including some fabulous events for kids. On Thursday and Saturday, the Improv Art Room invites kids to create their own works of art.