2022, UPDATED 2024
Being an art lover I sometimes visit a city especially for a museum. In this blogpost I created a list of my favorite art museums, some very well known, while others are less visited hidden gems. This list is in a random order, as different moods ask for different kind of museums, but as I live in the Netherlands, I featured many Dutch museums.
Boijmans Depot in Rotterdam
Actually this is not a museum but a depot where artworks are stored for the museum Boijmans van Beuningen. The architecture is absolutely stunning, on the exterior as well as inside. You can find my separate blogpost about this museum here.
Victor Vasarely museum in Budapest
I discovered this museum by accident, while researching art museums in Budapest on a cold day. A cubist museum sounded interesting, the entrance was very cheap and I ended up loving it!
Victor Vasarely museum in Aix-en-Provence
After having discovered the work of Victor Vasarely while visiting his museum in Budapest I have a soft spot for his cubist art works. In Aix-en-Provence you will find a museum with his largest works (in size).
Vitra design museum in Weil am Rhein
If you love art, you usually love design as well, so I included this one in the list. You might not know who Vitra is, but you sure know the Eames chair, which is designed by this company. The museum is located in Germany, but we visited from nearby Basel. The building is designed by the amazing Frank Gehry. You can find my blogpost about Vitra here.
The Met in New York
I love a good classic and The Metropolitan in New York is exactly that. The variety in works is amazing, the steps make for the perfect photo op and the Egyptian section is breathtaking. Don’t mind my pictures from 2008, I was feeling very Blair Waldorfesque 😉
La Piscine in Roubaix
What sounds better than an art museum with statues surrounding an art deco pool? If you agree with this, you should visit La Piscine in Roubaix. The art deco pool and accompanying changing rooms are great, but the art is worth a visit too.
Musee d’Orsay Paris
This museum has an amazing collection of Impressionist paintings and is located in old train station. An absolute must see when in Paris! Find my Paris activity guide here.
Picasso museum in Antibes
I have visited several great museums with works of Picasso. In Antibes you find a pretty museum with views over the Mediterrean that mainly focuses on the photography works of Picasso. In Barcelona there is a great museum with older work of Picasso, I was super surprised to discover that Picasso was also a great Impressionist painter (what can’t he do?).
Fondacion Louis Vuitton – Paris
I mainly visited Fondacion Louis Vuitton for its special architecture, as the building is designed by the amazing Frank Gehry. The building looks like a vessel that is floating on water and the roof construction is super impressive. As an added bonus you also get Eiffel tower views from the museum.
Kröller Müller at the Veluwe
The Kröller Müller museum is one of the best museums in the Netherlands. It features many impressionist paintings as well as works by Mondriaan. What is extra special about this museum is that it is situated in the middle of nature reserve the Veluwe. You can rent the famous white bikes to cycle in this beautiful park. The garden of the museum is also famous for the modern statues.
Voorlinden in Wassenaar
Little did I know that the Netherlands has another museum with international allure and I was super impressed when visiting Museum Voorlinden in Wassenaar. I specifically went for the exhibition of Yayoi Kusama, which was amazing, but I also loved the permanent collection.
L’Orangerie in Paris
Musee de L’Orangerie is the museum that hosts the famous waterlillies by Monet. The paintings are enormous and it is super impressive to stand in front of them. The special exhibits are great too and we were happy to visit the David Hockney exhibition in Dec 2021. Find my Paris activity guide here.
Van Gogh in Amsterdam
A must visit in Amsterdam is the beautiful Van Gogh Museum. I visited this museum again when they had the lovely David Hockney exhibition. The Van Gogh is situated at the Museumplein where you will find many other great museums such as the Stedelijk, the Moco museum with works of Banksy and the Rijksmuseum.
Moco Museum in Amsterdam
The Moco museum in Amsterdam is an incredibly modern museum, which always features artworks of it-artists. You can find works of Yayoi Kusama, Banksy and The Kid and digital artworks such as infinity rooms and a Teamlab collaboration. The only negative about this museum is that it is very small.
Escher in The Hague
Hielke already was a big fan of Escher, but after visiting his museum in The Hague I was also convinced! You will find the famous impossible stairs drawings as well as many other great works.
The Louvre in Paris
Of course The Louvre is also included in this list. For me, mainly because of the building. Not because the art isn’t great, but because the building is so big, it can be an exhausting visit. Make sure you focus on a specific area during your visit, which will increase your fun.
Miho museum in Japan
This museum is designed by I.M. Pei, who you may remember from the Louvre. It is located in a stunning piece of nature. The many glassworks provide you with the perfect view of your surroundings. This will give you a very relaxing museum visit.
Singer Museum in Laren
The Singer Museum in Laren took me by surprise. A friend invited me to come and I was impressed by the art collection, the beautiful building and the gardens surrounding it. If you are visiting on a sunny day, you must plan a lunch in the lush gardens.
Teylers Museum in Haarlem
Teylers is worth a visit, even if it is just to see the building. Teylers is not just an art museum, it also features objects of natural history and Pieter Teyler’s house which has been kept in 18th century style. Beside that you could not visit every area with a stroller, I found this museum to be exceptionally kid friendly with lots of activities for the kids.
Barberini museum in Potsdam
The Barberini museum is the latest museum I was super impressed with. When I discovered that Potsdam had a impressionist museum I had to visit. Apparantly the largest collection of Monet paintings, outside of France, is hosted here. During our visit there was a Munch exhibit, which was very interesting as well. But the permanent collection alone is worth the visit already.
