Shaped by sea, the Puget Sound and a past that runs from Native American history to ships and immigration, Seattle, Washington, boasts an arts scene as rich as its heritage. As a major metropolitan center, you’ll find here and in the general area a very good selection of fine art museums, galleries and art-related events to fill your itinerary. In other words, don’t let the drizzle drive you nuts, but head indoors instead to see works by both international artists and Northwestern talents.

Topping the list of must-see exhibit spaces is the Seattle Art Museum’s (SAM) recently finished downtown facility, shiny and newly expanded. Venture on next to the associated Seattle Asian Art Museum, a worthwhile detour not only for collection but also the afforded views and Art Deco architecture. Under the same SAM umbrella is the Olympic Sculpture Park, which mixes great water views with 9 acres of open-air sculpture, a fine way to finish off one of the city’s prized sunny days. For open air art, however, it doesn’t end there; Seattle has a very strong funded public art program, and equipped with a Public Art Map of Seattle (available as a free download) you can both enjoy an extended city tour and get a thumb on the artistic pulse of this lively city. Do also leave time for a stop at the Frye Art Museum, where the collection based on European paintings from the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries is supplemented with thoroughly contemporary changing exhibits.

It involves a drive, but we can’t leave you here without mentioning the region’s “glass” darling, Dale Chihuly, a Tacoma-born sculptor with work on show around the globe. Even if you can’t afford a Chihuly souvenir, you’ll definitely want make the trip to Tacoma to visit the Museum of Glass and the Tacoma Art Museum, both showcasing a superb selection of Chihuly’s work as well as a collection of artworks by international talents.

So don’t let the drizzle ruin your day, or your coiffure in Seattle, Washington: use it as an excuse to soak up some culture, and maybe get inspired along the way.