The first national art museum of Latin America was founded in 1880 and called the National Museum of Arts. It is the oldest art museum in South America. The building where it is located now was constructed 30 years after its foundation. In 1910 a French-Chilean architect Emile Jéquier had worked out the design, but the building process itself finished to celebrate the centenary of independence of the Republic It was his present to the residents of the Chilean capital, Santiago. 

The building hosting the museum is nothing else but a magnificent work of art itself, an architectural landmark; it is a real palace with an area of 6000 square meters. It was built in a neoclassical style with Baroque and Art Nouveau elements. Its facade and internal layout were modeled after the blueprint of The Petit Palais (small palace) in Paris. The central dome of 115 tons was brought to Chile from Belgium in 1907.  

Today, it houses more than 3000 artworks of different periods, starting from the Colonial, and the biggest sculpture collection in the country. In the central museum room, besides marble and bronze statues, there is a collection of ancient sculptures that includes 15 items from Black Africa.

The museum also owns the second Chilean collection of paintings in the country. In the south wing of the museum, you can enjoy priceless works of Italian, French, Spanish, Flemish painters. And in the north wing, there is a permanent exhibition represented by Chilean artists: Pedro Lira, Alfredo Valenzuela Puelma,  Alberto Valenzuela Llanos, and Alejandro Cicarelli.

The museum of contemporary art of the Chilean State University is located at the end of the palace. There is also a library with almost 100 thousand volumes dedicated to art. The museum regularly hosts various cultural and educational events, temporary exhibitions and seminars.