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Netherlands
Amsterdam’s Museum of Modern Art has a fabulous collection from Piat Mondrian to Karel Appel. There’s a host of galleries in the city centre but this has one of the best collections of contemporary art and is definitely worth a look. It’s free with a Museumkaart or Amsterdam Stadspas and there’s a nice little café on the second floor where you can grab a coffee and discuss the exhibits.
Oosterdokskade 3–5
If art bores you silly, try the torture museum!
The Van Gogh Museum’s Multimedia Tour is a fantastic way of immersing yourself in the colourful life and work of Van Gogh.
Through the simple-to-use handheld device and headset you can delve deeper in to the stories behind many of Van Gogh’s famous pictures as well as giving you access to a wealth of extra information including photos, letters, film clips and drawings.
A great interactive experience that enhanced my visit and gave me a real insight in to the often tragic life of the man behind the paintings.
At the Van Gogh museum, there is a wall just outside the gift shop which has two built in cameras.
You can create your own 20 second video clip and send it for free to your friends and family (you simply enter their e-mail address).
Easy to use and quite handy when waiting for a while for the other half to emerge from the gift shop. You can even stand in the background and do a little jiggle or Riverdance when others are making their videos!
If Amsterdam’s tourists and tack overwhelm you head for a little known doorway on the ‘Spui’ through which you can enter the Begijnhof’s little haven of medieval serenity.
It’s a court of almshouses clustered around a peaceful garden where devout women have been housed since 1475 and religious women continue to be housed.
If you miss the hidden doorway, the entrance is also through the Amsterdam Historical Museum, the former city orphanage on Kalverstraat.
Be sure to go on a day trip to the Kroller Muller Museum on the train to Ede and then by bus to the national park.
Enjoy strolling along the canals and stopping for a beer in a brown bar.
Enjoy the museums too and galleries too.
If you want to see one of the best and most memorable art collections in Europe come to Amsterdam and catch a train or bus to Otterloo to make a visit to the Kröller-Müller Museum.
It has a remarkable collection of the best of a variety of great artists. The choice of the original collection was made by a very discerning art collector. The best Van Goghs are there which you can compare with those in the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam.
And there are many other artist’s works and sculptures in the park set in open countryside.
When in Amsterdam, even for a one day, do get a culture card with which you get a siginificant discount with all museums, galleries, public transportation and more.
The Van Gogh museum is brilliant, so, of course, crowded at peak times. Many hotels now let you buy tickets from their reception so you can avoid the queues. When you get there don’t miss the chance to email your friends a free short film message of yourself from their auditorium – they will receive the clip with your footage in a Van Gogh style frame.
Museumplein
Take time out from the shopping and bars to visit the Stedelijk Museum of modern art. It houses some incredible pop art pieces, including Lichtenstein and Warhol, as well as changing exhibitions regularly - and all for a very reasonable price, and in an incredible location. Make the most of the cafe and shop too!
Take a day trip to the Kröller-Müller Museum.
At the excellent Hotel Fita (Jan Luykenstraat 37), comfort, a warm welcome and a scrumptious breakfast await.
The hotel is near the Van Gogh Musuem - handy if you arrive on a Friday evening, as it is open until 10pm and there are no queues, so you can explore and then enjoy the rest of the weekend.
Buy a strip of tram tickets when you arrive at Central station - you'll save money and hassle, and can hop on and off trams as you wish.
Check out Electric Ladyland: The First Museum of Fluorescent Art (Tweede Leliedwarsstraat 5, 1015 TB). There are glowing rocks, fluorescent objects, objects that you didn't know were fluorescent and a grotto that you are encouraged to play with via switches. Owner Nick Padalino explains all with reverential enthusiasm.
The Van Gogh museum is well worth the visit, even if you’re not necessarily an art lover. Just enjoy the atmosphere of the museum and the simplicity of the paintings. And think about that poor soul whose mind endured torment to produce these masterpieces.
Also check out the Rijksmuseum with Rembrandt’s “Nightwatch”. And those fascinating Dutch interiors by Vermeer and Van Hals.
Van Gogh Museum: Paulus Potterstraat 7; www.vangoghmuseum.nl;
Rijksmuseum: Jan Luijkenstraat 1; www.rijksmuseum.nl
Foam is a relatively new and excellent photography museum. It consistently holds solid exhibits, ranging from big names like Mario Testino or Henri Cartier-Bresson to lesser-known but none the less interesting photographers.
Keizergracht 609, it's located very centrally one of the major canals; tel: 020 551 6500; www.foam.nl
The quiche in the Van Gogh gallery is amazing. I'd give the gateaux a miss though.
With major renovation taking place at the moment (October 2005) and continuing until 2008 the main museum building is closed, however, a special exhibition entitled Masterpieces is on display in the Philips Wing.
This exhibition (containing over 400 exhibits – a fair amount for a lot of museums but hardly a scratch on the surface for the hundreds of thousands the Rijksmuseum contains) concentrates on the Golden Age of Dutch art – the 17th Century.
Exhibits include the amazingly detailed Dolls House owned and commissioned by Petronella Oortman – as well as representing a wonderful feat of artistry it is also a great historical record of life in a Dutch canal side house. There are pictures and artefacts illustrating Amsterdam and Holland’s standing as a world trading power (a very good accompaniment to many of the exhibits in the Amsterdam Historisch Museum) and paintings by Frans Hals, Vermeer and, of course Rembrandt including the magnificent “Night Watch”.
Beware that the galleries can get very busy, particularly at the weekend and you may find yourself avoiding tour groups and waiting, or jostling, to see some of the more well known paintings. It's worth it though.
Entry: 9 euro plus 4 euro or an audio guide
Opening Times: 9am-6pm daily
The website (www.rijksmuseum.nl) is a fantastic site and well worth a look.
The entrance is currently on Jan Luijkenstraat
The website (www.rijksmuseum.nl) is a fantastic site and well worth a look
Housed in the Oude Kerk (in itself well worth a visit), to me the World Press Photo exhibition is about everything that modern cosmopolitan Amsterdam really represents: a tolerance and an affection for the rest of the world, combined with a deep concern for what's going on out there.
This showpiece of the planet's best photojournalism visits several cities around the world, but Amsterdam is its spiritual home and the Oude Kerk is a most appropriate setting.
Jacob Obrechtstraat 26;
tel: 20 676 6096;
The 2006 exhibition closes on June 18 but is on tour throughout Europe and the world: check www.worldpressphoto.nl for details.
Forgive the Dutch for laying it on a bit thick this year with the 400th anniversary of Rembrandt's birth, and get yourself to Amsterdam for an art-lover's dream. There's exhibitions all over the city, with the comprehensive displays at the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum among the highlights. One of the only chances you'll have to see so much art in one place at the same time.
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