Houstonmetropolis of the south

One of the world’s great private collections—amassed by longtime Houston arts philanthropists and human rights champions Jean and Dominique de Menil—The Menil Collection fills a sleek yet understated Renzo Piano-designed structure in the city’s museum district. The vast collection is concentrated into the areas of antiquities: Byzantine/medieval; Asian, Pacific Islands and Pacific Northwest Coast; and modern and contemporary, allowing visitors to see how beautifully a number themes connect different parts of the world and periods of time. Across the street from the main museum, you’ll find another building designed by Piano—this one devoted entirely to the paintings and sculpture of American abstract artist Cy Twombly. The tiny Byzantine Fresco Chapel Museum close by, also part of Menil Collection campus, houses exquisite 13th-century frescoes from Cyprus. Admission here and to all Menil Collection buildings is free.