foodor

Hi all,
Let's talk about art museums. Which art museums are the best in your opinion? here's my list. I based this on my preference and my knowledge/study in old master.

In term of the quality of old master paintings collection I think these museums are the best

1. Uffizi
2. Prado
3. Louvre
4. Gemaldegalerie, Dresden
5. National Gallery, London
6. Vatican
7. Kunshistorisches, Vienna
8. Alte Pinakothek, Munich
9. Brera, Milan
10. Hermitage, St. Petersburg
11. Gemaldegalerie, Berlin
12. Accademia, Venice
13. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
14. National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
15. Capodimonte, Naples
16. Galleria Palatina, Florence
17. Galleria Borghese, Rome
18. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
19. National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh
20. Musees Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Brussels

charnees

I think art in the Uffizi is poorly displayed, which greatly distracts from enjoying it. I also like the old Impressinist collection in l'Orangerie Museum in Paris, which has been moved to l'Orsay, which I thought was harder to follow around. (That reveals my age: I think l'Orangerie was closed many decades ago.)

The Louvre is stunning and overwhelming, but gorgeous.

I like the Met in NYC a lot.

The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam is excellent, and so is the Van Gogh, it of course it is limited.

I liked the Mexican National Museum in Mexico City too.

I don't have much other experience with art museums.

foodor

hi charnees, yes logistically Uffizi may not be up to par to other well-funded museums. The building was never meant to be a museum or a palace. The building is small, it can only accommodate 4000 visitors per day. Poor thing! But it's hard to argue with the quality of its old master collection.

In my opinion, arrangement in Louvre is even worse, it's like they just throw in all the masterpieces into one gigantic hall and have them all fight for visitors attention.

nytraveler

Well - I wouldn't limit art museums to old masters - but think you need to include everything to the current day. Also - by "art" are we limited to paintings and sculpture? or other types of art as well.

What I have enjoyed the most (using a broad view of art) are - not in order

Louvre
British Museum
the Met
Musee d'Orsay
Van Gogh Museums
Rijksmuseum
Prado
National Gallery - London
Tate
MoMA
Cluny
Pergamom
Hermitage
Vatican Museum
Borghese
Capitoline
Uffizi
Pitti Palace
Frick

And too many more to mention.

foodor

hi nytraveler, great list.

of course everyone else is free to include any other medium in their best art museum list.

for me i just prefer old master paintings, that's what I know and appreciate more than any other medium or era

kit

Nothing new in my list, but to focus, I had to limit myself to five!

In order, my favorites:
Prado
Kunshistorisches
d'Orsay
the Met
Rijksmuseum

zoecat

Picasso Museum in Paris. I can't wait to see the completed remodel.

Dukey1

Different strokes for different folks.

I like the Rijks, the Hermitage (because it has more than bare walls behind some of those 3 million works); I thought the lighting in the D'Orsay was poor. I even like the Wallace Collection in London.

HappyTrvlr

MoMA,
D'Orsay
The Met
Shanghai Museum
L'Orangerie

Aduchamp1

Lists of anything are basically worthless. Museums have different artistic and intellectual intents, some are organic some are intentional. There are general museums and others that are specialized. MoMA, because of prejudice of the Fodor's board person, which has the most important modern art colelction is omitted from the original list. The Chicago while they do not have depth of others has seminal exemplars of various genres. The Getty in LA is one of the beautiful settings. The Louvre, suprisingly enough, displays their work in a way that is not condusive to appreciating art. The Met in NYC, stages exceptional and thoughtful exhibtions and how it ranks 18th with the National Gallery of Scotland is beyond me. The Prado has a great apprecaition and joy for its art and the work is often positioned for enjoyment of the visitor. The Cloisters, a small outpost in NYC of the Met, offers serenity and sense of a time and place plus works of extarordinary craftsmanship.

Thus lists are meaningless because the criteria usually goes to the common denominator,

foodor

Hi Aduchamp1,

Prejudice?!? Preference, I think that's the word you're looking for.

I clearly invite people to list their own 'best art museums' based on their criteria and preference. If someone prefers Asian art, then by all means, they welcome to list museums in Asia. And I clearly stated my own criteria: quality old master collection.

I don't really care if the museum has gorgeous settings like the Getty or The Met, quality of the collection is first and most important to me. The museum could display their collection in barn or old garage or something, but if they got superb collection, it gets my vote.

tailsock

my favorites

Chicago Institute of Art- Chicago
Prado- Madrid
British Museum- London

111op

A few that haven't been mentioned yet but are worth a visit:

Groeninge Museum, Bruges
Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam
Mauritshuis, The Hague

foodor

111op,

I'd love to visit Groeninge Museum someday. I know it has superb old Flemish and Northern Renaissance collection

scot1

glad you mentioned one in Munich Foodor as going bthere next week so will probly check that out along with the nueu & modern ones.My personal faves are Pompidou/orsay in Paris, the Peggy Guggenheim in Venice - its history & setting are fab too - and the museum of modern art in Stockholm is good too,I also loved Maeght museum in St Paul De Vence near nice http://www.fondation-maeght.com/index.
Museum of Modern Art in Nice is good too

foodor

Hi scot1, I love Alte Pinakothek

My 2 favorite northern renaissance paintings are in that museum, seek out the iconic Altdorfer's Battle of Alexander and Hans Memling's Advent of Christ, it's a long painting with colorful and great scenery.

There's also one Leonardo painting

111op

Yes, it has Jan van Eyck's Madonna with Canon van der Paele, among other paintings.

Boijmans has Geertgen, Bruegel, Bosch.

LSky

I have so many favorites I couldn't list them.

You registered at fodor's just to ask this question. Why?

immimi

I 'did' all the Big Ones when I was an art student in the 60s
- now that I'm elderly I just go to the small ones with the
select collections that appeal to me now. Some of these are
certainly not considered Top Drawer but they please me - and
isn't that what it's all about?

The Courtauld
Burrell Collection
Nat. Gallery of Scotland
Honolulu Gallery - not sure of the name; the lanai setting
is just amazing.
Musee Matisse
...and many more small venues.

foodor

Hi LSky,

I've been lurking here alot in the past. As soon as I registered, being an art geek, this is the topic I want to talk about. I traveled around Europe a lot already, so I want to talk something new.

Hi immimi, you made me look up Burrell Collection, thanks. See, there's always some new museums to discover