As someone who loves Art History, I wanted to share some of my favorite museums that have mesmerizing art pieces and worth checking out if you are ever visiting any of these countries!
#1: The Louvre Museum
Located in Paris, France, the Louvre is a grand place where many different French monarchs once lived. What I really like about this Museum is how walking through it is almost like walking through history. What I mean by that is that the palace holds many special historical treasures, such as the belongings of French kings throughout history, including even the marks of Napoléon I. The Louvre also holds some of the greatest and most famous art pieces in the world! Some notable paintings that can be found there are Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci and the Vénus de Milo. Also if you are a fan of impressionist art then this Museum is ideal for you, because it holds some of Claude Monet's finest paintings.
#2: The British Museum
Located in London, England, this museum is definitely very notable as it holds a variety of the worlds’ historical art pieces amounting to almost more than seven million pieces of art from all around the globe. This museum is essentially a walkthrough of world history. For me, it's like an opportunity to visit all the different parts of the world, and all in one place. The British Museum’s art pieces range from the art pieces of Ancient Egypt to the Renaissance and they are all absolutely magnificent! However, something very controversial about this museum is the methods that they used to acquire these pieces, as it was mostly done through colonialism and imperialism, also known as “art trafficking.”
#3: The Getty Museum
Los Angeles also has some magnificent museums to visit, such as the Getty. It holds many artifacts and architectural pieces as well as grand views of gardens and LAs’ hills. My favorite thing about the Getty is their Van Gogh collection, which holds many amazing paintings such as “Irises.” Another great part about the Getty is that you do not necessarily need to be a die-hard art fanatic to want to visit, as the Getty also contains many sculptures and photographs that are worth seeing! All in all, it is very diverse and a great place to enjoy the beauty of nature and art!
#4: Prado Museum, Madrid
This one was added purely because of how much of a fan I am of Goya’s paintings... I mean they depict so many different and important aspects of life through art; from intense emotions to political comments. What’s not to love about this Spanish painter? The Prado Museum goes back 200 years, and it is a collection of the Spanish monarchs’ art collections. It is also one of the most visited places in Madrid so if you ever get a chance to visit Spain, why not also take a look at its art history and learn more about the country?
#5: Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, California
This list concludes with another great Museum located in the United States, and one that holds a wide range of art pieces, from Southeast Asia to Renaissance Europe, to the impressionist era. Similar to the Getty, the Museum also has many sculptures and many beautiful gardens to enjoy, and it’s also a very peaceful and calming place to just relax and admire some of the worlds’ beautiful paintings. The Museum is named after Norton Simon, a man who dedicated his life to collecting beautiful art pieces, built off the belief that art was a form of communication between the visual and physical world. The Norton Simon Museum truly holds up to this idea, as the paintings there challenge you to have more dialogues and bask in the different ways that people have been creative in their art. For example, looking at an impressionist piece done by Monet urges you to wonder how the artist was feeling at the moment, he was painting and his intention behind it. Not to mention they have a gift shop there where you can purchase art history books or even replicas of some amazing art pieces!
Well, this is it for our list! These museums are my personal favorites, as they contain some of my favorite art pieces! Which Museum would you like to visit if you got the chance?
The Louvre looks gorgeous!