The Museum of International Propaganda is a free and genuinely fascinating collection built from one couple's decades-long obsession with state-sponsored persuasion. The exhibit covers Soviet socialist realism, Nazi Germany, Maoist China, and Cold War America in equal measure, showing how different ideological regimes used art, posters, and imagery to shape public consciousness.
The collection avoids making easy political arguments and lets the material speak for itself, which makes it more thought-provoking than a museum with a simpler thesis might be. It is small and can be done in an hour or so, but the quality of the collection is exceptional. Free admission makes it an easy addition to a San Rafael day.