Artsy Sightseeing

Exterior of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam

Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam: Guaranteed Thrills for the Artsy Traveler

Artsy Sightseeing, Destinations, Europe, Get Inspired, Netherlands carolcram Leave a Comment on Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam: Guaranteed Thrills for the Artsy Traveler

Last updated on October 5th, 2023 at 07:24 pm

I first visited the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam in 1970 and remember it as a gloomy, rather dingy place. The famous Night Watch by Rembrandt was so dark as to be virtually invisible, and I don’t recall seeing any of the amazing objets d’art, from porcelain violins to full-size doll houses, that we saw on my most recent visit.

On my trip to Amsterdam in September 2023, the newly renovated Rijksmuseum is a total delight.

It’s even more amazing than the Van Gogh Museum, although I suppose it’s not fair to compare! But the main thing to keep in mind is that you’ll need considerably more time to tour the Rijksmuseum than you will for the Van Gogh Museum.

In this post, I share my favorite pieces at the Rijksmuseum, a must-visit for Amsterdam-bound artsy travelers; make sure you reserve well in advance (more on that later).

Overview of the Rijksmuseum

The most important thing to remember about the Rijksmuseum is its marvelous scope. Yes, there are many, many paintings, including a respectable number of Dutch and Flemish Old Masters, but there are also many, many rooms full of other “stuff”, from model ships to wood sculptures to doll houses. You could spend days exploring.

Location of the Rijksmuseum

The map below shows the location of the Rijksmuseum (#1) in Amsterdam’s Museumplein, easily reached from the Centrum via trams 2 or 12. Also shown is the location of the Van Gogh Museum (#2) next door, and the location of the charming apartment we stayed in on tiny Sint Nicholastraat in the lively Centrum area (#3). Called Here’s Lucy, it’s highly recommended if you’re looking for a private one-bedroom apartment and a much better deal than any hotel I’ve ever stayed at in Amsterdam. The location, not far from the Central Station and the Damrak, is pretty much perfect.

Map courtesy of Wanderlog, a trip planner on iOS and Android

Medieval Art at the Rijksmuseum

The first room we enter features art from the Middle Ages—and wow! I have a soft spot for art from this period that spans from 1100 to about 1500, and the Rijksmuseum has a superb and varied collection. Here are a few of the knockout pieces.

Wood Sculptures

The figures in this wood sculpture were created in 1475 from a hunk of oak and formed part of a large altar. It depicts the adoration of the newborn child by the Virgin, Joseph and the angels. Check out the detail and the expressions on the faces.

Wood sculpture of jesus and apostles in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

This amusing sculpture from around 1380 of a monk who can barely see over the edge of the pulpit is actually a medieval ink pot. The scribe dipped his pen or quill in the sleeves of the monk’s habit.

Medieval wood sculpture of monk in pulpit s in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

And look at this gem of a sculpture that dates from 1520 – closer to Renaissance than medieval. It’s one of three related pieces. This one depicts the celebration of Mass with Christ. Check out the bread Christ holds in his hands and also the impassive look on the servant girl’s face.

Wood sculpture of Jesus with apostles at dinner n the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

One of the reasons I like medieval art so much is because it depicts the elaborate gowns worn by both men and women, but particularly women. This wooden sculpture is one of 24 similar-sized sculptures that ringed the tomb of Isabella of Bourbon, the wife of Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. She died in 1465. The figures represented mourning family members and ancestors and were known as “weepers”.

Medieval statue at the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

Renaissance Paintings

While most of the paintings in the medieval and Renaissance rooms at the Rijksmuseum were created in the low countries, this depiction of Mary Magdalene comes from Italy and is an example of the International Gothic style. I’m quite taken by the elaborate coiffure and the beautiful way in which the red gown is rendered.

Gothic painting in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

This landscape depicts an episode in the conquest of America and was painted in 1535 not long after the conquest. The painting is the first to depict Spanish soldiers subduing the people who lived in the “new world.” Jan Jansz Mostaert, the painter, created a traditional European landscape and then added a few exotic elements—a monkey, a porcupine, and some parrots— to show that the landscape was not in fact European.

Painting of soldiers in the New World at the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

Dutch Ships at the Rijksmuseum

Several rooms are devoted to displaying models of Dutch ships. They are remarkable! This model of a Dutch warship in the late 17th century was made at the same dockyards where real warships were built. It’s about one/twelfth life-size. The real ship would have had 74 guns. I am particularly taken by the elaborate decoration and the sheer size of the stern area where presumably the captain would have his quarters. I doubt conditions were quite so luxurious for the regular sailors.

Model of a Dutch warship in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam
Model ship in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

Here’s another view of the many ship models in the Rijksmuseum.

Room of ship models in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

Masterworks at the Rijksmuseum

Most visitors to the Rijksmuseum make a beeline for the “Hall of Honour” which includes several paintings by Rembrandt and Vermeer–probably the two most famous Dutch artists.

The Night Watch by Rembrandt

The Night Watch is displayed in a temperature-controlled structure so we can’t get very close. It’s an impressive piece, for sure, and certainly much better to look at now than it was when I first saw it at the age of 14 when it was almost black. Here’s Gregg checking it out.

The Night Watch at the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

And here’s a close-up sans viewers. Thanks to glare, it’s almost impossible to get a decent shot, but you get the idea. There’s so much life and movement in the painting. Everyone is doing something. I like the drummer to the right and the little girl to the left of the guy with the red sash.

Night Watch at the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

The Jewish Bride by Rembrandt

In this beautiful portrayal of a newly married couple, Rembrandt used thick, impasto paint and worked it with a palette knife to create a glittering and sculptural relief. There is a bittersweet quality to this painting. The man looks to be quite a bit older than his bride. While richly dressed, she looks very uncertain about what the future might hold for her.

Rembrandt's Jewish Bride at the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

The Milkmaid by Vermeer

The small, intimate paintings by Vermeer are a big draw at the Rijksmuseum with several groups clustered around them listening to tour guides or audio guides. I managed to sneak through and get this picture of The Milkmaid, which I’ve always had a soft spot for, perhaps because the subject is so humble and yet so exquisitely rendered. She is totally intent upon her task, unaware she will be looked at by millions for centuries to come. This painting also shows how Vermeer was a master of light. You really “get” how great Vermeer was when you compare his paintings to those of most of his contemporaries. While most are competently painted, they don’t glow like Vermeer’s paintings do. He didn’t complete many paintings in his life, but each one was a masterpiece.

The Threatened Swan by Jan Asselijn

This painting by Jan Asselijn is an oil on canvas from 1650. It’s reproduced on bags, mugs, tea towels and other products in the gift shop so obviously it strikes a chord with people. It depicts a swan fiercely defending its nest against a dog. In later centuries, the scuffle was interpreted as a political allegory, with the white swan symbolizing the Dutch statesman Johann de Witt who was assassinated in 1672 while protecting the country from its enemies. This meaning was attached to the painting when it became the first work to be accepted into the collection of the Nationale Kunstgalerij, the forerunner of the Rijksmuseum, in 1800. I’m guessing that the Dutch liked the image of their nation as a swan furiously defending itself.

Threatened Swan in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

Still Lifes at the Rijksmuseum

I’ve developed a real fondness for still life paintings—of flowers, kitchen scenes, fruit, and the like. I’m not sure why, but there’s something kind of comforting about super-realistic paintings of everyday things–and the Dutch are masters of the genre.

The Well-Stocked Kitchen by Joachim Beuckelaer

This piece by Joachim Beuckelaer painted in Antwerp in 1566 depicts Christ’s visit to Mary and Martha, although that’s hard to figure out because the action takes place in the background while in the foreground is a profusion of richly painted vegetables, fruit, meat, poultry, and pots and pans. The contrast between the foreground and the background conceals the message of the painting: do not give in to earthly temptations.

Large still life at the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

Still Life of Flowers in a Glass Vase by Rachel Ruysch

I’m thrilled to discover that this stiff life was painted by a female artist I’d not heard of. Her name is Rachel Ruysch and I have discovered that she was big news in her time. In fact, she was the most famous female artist of the period. Patrons loved her monumental, sumptuous flower still lifes like this one and paid big guilders to own one. Even after marrying and having ten children, Rachel Ruysch continued to not only paint, but also to sign her paintings with her own name. Now she’s an artist I want to know more about.

Rachel Rausch still life in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

Later in the gift shop, I buy a stunningly illustrated book about still lifes from the Dutch Golden Age that includes quite a few of Ruysch’s paintings. Unfortunately, the text is in Dutch, but I buy it anyway so I can enjoy looking at the paintings and drawings, most of which are by women artists. It appears that still lifes—and flower paintings in particular—were popular subjects for female painters of the period.

Still Life with Gilt Cup by Willem Claesz Heda

This painting includes an astounding array of grey tonalities. Heda’s palette is subtle—pewter, silver, damask, glass, mother-of-pearl, with a few yellow and ochre accents thrown in for good measure. He specialized in near monochromatic still lifes that were known as “tonal banquet pieces.”

Monochromatic still life in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

Still Life with Cheese by Floris Claesz van Dijck

Van Dijck really brings the subjects in his painting to life. Check out the ridges in the slabs of cheese and how the pewter plate extending over the edge of the table seems to come right out of the painting. Floris van Dijck was considered one of the pioneers of Dutch still-life painting.

Still life with cheese in the Riiksmuseum in Amsterdam

Flower Still Life with a Crown Imperios Fritillary in a Stone Niche by Jacob Woutersz Vosmaer

This impressively named painting is an exceptionally large example of a still life. There’s a tactile quality to the flowers that makes them look like they are moving. And then there’s the wee mouse and the cracks in the wall—real life intruding on the luscious beauty of the flower arrangement.

Flower still life at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam

Porcelain at the Rijksmuseum

The Rijksmuseum includes a lot of porcelain and china. I don’t have the energy to tour all the rooms, but my eye is caught by this tin-glazed earthenware violin. It cannot be played and was made purely as a decorative object. The violin is considered to be an absolute masterpiece of Delft earthenware—and no wonder.

Porcelain violin at the Riiksmuseum in amsterdam

Doll Houses at the Rijksmuseum

One of the rooms in the Rijksmuseum is devoted to showcasing two extraordinary dollhouses. They’re both HUGE! And the detail in the rooms is truly astonishing. Here are just a few of the interiors.

Practical Information

The Rijksmuseum can sell out so buy your tickets online at least a week before you plan to travel to Amsterdam (possibly more during the busy summer months). Most visitors appear to get the audio guide which probably enhances the viewing experience. We did not get it, preferring to discuss the pieces as we look at them. Click one of the options below to purchase your ticket.

Conclusion

The Rijksmuseum is well worth several hours of your time on even the shortest visit to Amsterdam. I would venture to say that it’s even better than the neighboring Van Gogh Museum simply because it’s a lot bigger and has a lot more to look at. But at the same time, the Rijksmuseum is not overwhelming. In my opinion, it’s a perfectly sized major museum to keep me entertained for a good two or three hours, with a wee break at some point to sample a coffee and a piece of cake in the airy cafeteria and of course to check out the gift shop.

Have you visited the Rijksmuseum? What are some of your favorites? Share in the comments below.

Other Posts About Great Art Museums

Carol Cram at Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam: Best Bets for the Artsy Traveler

Artsy Sightseeing, Destinations, Europe, Get Inspired, Netherlands carolcram Leave a Comment on Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam: Best Bets for the Artsy Traveler

Last updated on October 6th, 2023 at 04:01 pm

I remember the first time I saw the Van Gogh Museum, almost 50 years ago. Compared to the gingerbread façade of its neighbor, the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum is sleek and modern, and when I first saw it in 1974, it was fringed with massively tall sunflowers. I burst out laughing. How appropriate!

On my latest trip to Amsterdam in September 2023, I didn’t see the sunflowers, but the sleek, modern building remains and still houses the world’s most extensive and lovingly presented collection of work by the Netherlands’s fave artist–Vincent van Gogh. During his lifetime, he didn’t get much love from his home country, but that oversight has been more than made up for in recent decades.

Vincent van Gogh, who barely sold a painting during his life, is big business now.

In this post, I share my favorite pieces at the Van Gogh Museum, a must-visit for Amsterdam-bound artsy travelers, although make sure you reserve well in advance (more on that later).

The map below shows the location of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam’s Museumplein, easily reached from the Centrum via trams 2 or 12. Also shown is the location of the Rijksmuseum next door, and the location of the charming apartment we stayed in on tiny Sint Nicholastraat in the lively Centrum area. Called Here’s Lucy, it’s highly recommended if you’re looking for a private one-bedroom apartment and a much better deal than any hotel I’ve ever stayed at in Amsterdam. It’s situated not far from the Central Station and the Damrak is pretty much perfect.

Message at the entrance to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

Overview of the Van Gogh Museum

As the name suggests, the Van Gogh Museum is dedicated to exhibiting and celebrating the work of Vincent van Gogh, one of the world’s most beloved artists. It opened in 1973, three years after my first visit to Amsterdam and a year before my second visit to Amsterdam at the age of 18. I remember being so excited to tour the museum in 1974 when I was already a firm van Gogh fan.

The museum is the most visited museum in the Netherlands, and one of the top most-visited museums in the world. And no wonder! The collection is organized across four floors and includes pieces from several of van Gogh’s contemporaries, including Monet, Gauguin, Pissarro and others. The intention is to show van Gogh’s work in context and according to various themes, including self-portraits, early work, landscapes, and portraits.

Van Gogh provided hundreds of paintings and drawings over the course of just one decade, from 1880 to 1890. The collection at the Van Gogh Museum shows van Gogh as an artist intent on improving himself and his art while also being deeply engaged with the artistic developments of his day.

View of the Museum

A central atrium extends from the ground floor to the fourth floor and is dominated by a staircase and projections of details from van Gogh’s paintings that change regularly. The exhibition spaces run around three sides of the building.

Interior of the Van Gogh Museum with sunflowers projected

Self-Portraits of Van Gogh

The first room we entered featured a good collection of van Gogh’s self-portraits. I include two of my favorites. I like the contrast in how he handled the brushstrokes in these two works, and the intensity of his stare.

Self portrait of Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam
Self-Portrait, 1887
Self portrait of Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam
Self-Portrait with Grey Felt Hat

Van Gogh didn’t start painting seriously until he was 27 when he set to work to learn the rudiments of painting, mostly by studying the art of other artists. He was a great admirer of French 19th-century painters such as Jean-Francois Millet and Jules Breton who portrayed peasant life in the countryside.

Early Work

Most of van Gogh’s early work that he completed before he went to Paris and then finally to Provence use a very limited, even dreary palette. They have almost an Old Master feel to them.

Still Life with Open Bible

I particularly enjoyed a painting of his recently deceased father’s bible set next to van Gogh’s copy of La joie de vivre by Emile Zola–a ‘bible’ of modern life. The intention of the painting is to juxtapose the religious and traditional mores of his father with van Gogh’s more modern sensibilities. I was intrigued with how he rendered the open pages of the bible with rough brush strokes.

Bible and Zola painting by Van Gogh featured in The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

The Potato Eaters

One of van Gogh’s most famous works from his early period is The Potato Eaters. The darkness of the painting and the almost grotesque roughness of the figures exemplifies the harshness, even despair, of peasant life. Van Gogh wrote that a true peasant painting should smell of bacon, smoke, and steaming potatoes.

The Potato Eaters by Van Gogh featured in The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam
The Potato Eaters

Van Gogh in Paris

The gallery devoted to works that van Gogh created while living in Paris also include several works by his contemporaries, including Monet and Degas.

Nude Bathing by Degas

This nude by Degas is executed in numerous shades of pastel crayon and is one of several nudes that Degas exhibited in Paris and which van Gogh saw and greatly admired.

Nude bathing by Degas at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

View Seen Through a Balcony by Gustave Caillebotte

Another work by one of van Gogh’s contemporaries is the painting of a Paris street seen through a wrought iron balcony by Gustave Caillebotte. I’ve seen several of Caillebotte’s paintings at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris and like his work.

View Seen Through a Balocny by Gustave Caillebotte

Café Table with Absinthe

And here’s a painting that van Gogh did while living in Paris. It depicts a glass of absinthe in a café. Already his palette is starting to lighten up with more pastel colors and looser brushstrokes.

Absinthe in a Paris Cafe by Vincent Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

Still Lifes – Red Cabbage and Garlic

I don’t associate van Gogh with still life paintings except, of course, for his flower paintings. This painting of red cabbages and onions is a revelation. I love the blue, red, and gold palette and the vibrancy of his brushstrokes. This still life is anything but still. Van Gogh was apparently intent on studying color contrasts in the painting–the complementary colors of yellow and blue reinforcing each other. He was well aware of color theory and how different color combinations work together to produce different effects and even emotions.

Cabbages and onions painting by Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

Portraits

Several of van Gogh’s most famous paintings are portraits of people he met and interacted with–regular people such as a bar maid, a postman, and his landlord. The Van Gogh Museum includes a few of his portraits, although not any of the super famous ones.

Woman in the Bar

This painting of a solitary woman in a Paris café is a great example of how van Gogh used regular people he encountered every day as his models. The look on her face is so relatable–staring into the middle distance, lost in her own thoughts. Is she annoyed? Pensive? Or just bored?

Woman in a bar painting by Van Gogh in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

Van Gogh in the South of France

Van Gogh left bustling Paris for the south of France in late winter, arriving just as the trees were beginning to blossom.

The White Orchard

Here is one of three paintings he did not long after arriving in Arles. I’m entranced by the movement of the trees and the joyous freedom of the brushstrokes. It’s as if van Gogh’s been released from prison and poised on the edge of a whole new adventure, which indeed he was.

The White Orchard painting by Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

The Harvest

I felt very verklempt when I saw this painting, the very first van Gogh I ever saw and the first painting that launched me into a lifetime of loving art. I saw it at Expo 67 in Montreal when I was 11. A pretty uneventful childhood spent in Vancouver had not prepared me for modern art. I was blown away, first by The Harvest by van Gogh and then in the same exhibition at Expo 67 Lavender Mist by Jackson Pollock. It’s kinda no wonder I’ve ended up spending my life with a painter!

The Harvest makes me feel happy every time I see it. I’m not sure why. Perhaps it’s the bands of color and texture or maybe the balancing of the complementary colors of gold and blue. It just feels totally right. I look at it and I feel glad to be in the world.

The Harvest by Vincent Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

The Bedroom

How many times have I seen this iconic piece in reproductions and on mugs and mousepads, puzzles and pens? And yet seeing it in “real life” is still a thrill. There’s something so endearing about a man who paints his humble little bedroom and manages to infuse it with such warmth and loneliness. And again, it’s his use of complementary yellows and blues that makes the painting so satisfying to look at.

Sunflowers

And another iconic favorite! Composed of just three shades of yellow, this Sunflowers (he painted several versions) glows like lemons in the sun. The sunflowers are in various stages of dying and yet the painting is beguilingly cheerful.

The Sunflowers by Vincent Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

The Yellow House

And here’s yet another study in blues and yellows! Gosh, he’s good. Van Gogh manages to capture heat shimmering against the walls of the houses in Arles. He was hoping to turn his yellow house into an artist colony but only Gauguin came, and only stayed two months. Poor Vincent led a rather solitary existence.

The Yellow House by Vincent Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

Japanese Influence

Van Gogh was a huge fan of Japanese art, as were many of his contemporaries, and several pieces were directly influenced by it.

Almond Blossoms

He painted this gorgeous, Japanese-print-inspired piece depicting almond blossoms against a blue sky to celebrate the birth of his nephew and namesake, Vincent–the son of his beloved brother, Theo. It’s almost abstract in its focus only on the blossoms and the sky with no other landscape elements. Van Gogh himself recognized the piece as one of his best–and he wasn’t wrong!

Almong Blossoms by Vincent Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

The Sower

And finally, here is The Sower, one of van Gogh’s smallest and yet most well-known paintings. It has so much movement and energy. I can sense the man purposefully planting his seeds, completely trusting that they will come up in the spring. In this painting, the sky is green instead of blue which casts an eerie glow over the scene, giving it an almost foreboding look, although the sower seems oblivious to anything beyond the sowing of his seeds.

The Sower by Vincent Van Gogh at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam

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Practical Information

The Van Gogh Museum sells out many days in advance. Get your tickets online at least two weeks before you plan to travel to Amsterdam (possibly more during the busy summer months). Most visitors appear to get the audioguide which probably enhances the viewing experience. We did not, preferring to discuss the pieces as we looked at them. Every so often, you can discreetly eavesdrop on a guided tour. All of the ones I came across the morning we toured the museum were in English. Click one of the options below to purchase your ticket.

Conclusion

The Van Gogh Museum is well worth several hours of your time on even the shortest visit to Amsterdam. The only downside is that the world holds millions of van Gogh lovers and even with daily limits on visitors, a good chunk of them will be at the museum at the same time you are. It does get tiring dodging the crowds, particularly if you enjoy taking photos of the pieces like I do and also read all the captions. Most people are listening to audio guides and sometimes stand immobile for long periods in front of each painting. When several of them are congregated in front of a parituclarlty popular piece such as The Sunflowers, you’ll have to wait awhile to get your viewing turn.

But hey, it’s worth it. These are original paintings by Vincent Van Gogh! Artsy traveling doesn’t get much better. And when you’re done, you can tour no fewer than three gift shops (there may have been more) loaded to the gunnels with van Gogh schlock. On this trip I resisted, but I do own a very nice van Gogh pen that I purchased on a previous visit.

Have you visited the Van Gogh Museum? What are some of your favorites? Share in the comments below.

Other Posts About Great Art Museums

Tanvi Pathare and the Villa Lena in Tuscany

Free Your Inner Floral Artist at Stunning Villa Lena in the Tuscan Countryside

Activities, Artsy Sightseeing, Destinations, Get Inspired, Italy carolcram Leave a Comment on Free Your Inner Floral Artist at Stunning Villa Lena in the Tuscan Countryside

Last updated on April 6th, 2023 at 05:22 pm

As an Artsy Traveler, one of the most rewarding things I recommend you do is sign up for an artsy retreat in a gorgeous location. You’ll get inspired while learning new techniques and meeting like-minded travelers.

I recently discovered the Villa Lena in Tuscany (and I LOVE Tuscany!) where you can do just that.

Imagine spending four days surrounded by spring flowers in the Tuscan countryside while you learn how to arrange and paint flowers with master artist Tanvi Pathare. From May 5th to 10th in 2023, Tanvi will be conducting four watercolor master classes that “will focus on an old and healing art form: the slow-paced appreciation of flowers, landscapes, and natural beauty.”

Tanvi Pathare floral painting workshop at Villa Lena in Tuscany

Sounds pretty awesome to me! I hooked up virtually with Tanvi and asked her some questions about her background as an artist and about her upcoming Flower Painting Retreat at the Villa Lena in Tuscany.

Interview with Tanvi Pathare

I interviewed Tanvi virtually (and hope one day to meet and learn with her in person!). Here is our interview.

Who is Tanvi Pathare?

Artsy Traveler: Tell us about your background as an artist–where you studied and some of your influences.

Tanvi Pathare: I was born in Mumbai, India. Since an early age, I was fascinated by the idea that you could create something beautiful with your hands; I enjoyed the craft element of it. I studied at the Sir J. J. School of Art in Mumbai, after which I moved to Florence in the search of more formal training as a realist painter.

I studied in the painting program at the Florence Academy of Art. After graduating from this program, I began teaching, and have been a Principal Instructor for drawing and painting at The Florence Academy ever since.

I look up to painters such as Rembrandt, Titian, Van Dyck, John Singer Sargent, Emil Carlsen, Henri Fantin-Latour, and Isaac Levitan to name a few.

Tanvi’s Inspiration

Artsy Traveler: What is it about floral painting that inspires you?

Tanvi Pathare: I feel my journey as a painter involves the constant delightful pursuit of studying the perfection of nature. Flowers are a wonderful source of inspiration, as they change, move, and grow. I find tracking their beauty through paint highly intriguing.

Tanvi Pathare painting in Tuscany
Tanvi teaching painting in Florence

Tanvi’s Favorite Flowers

Artsy Traveler: Do you have any favorite flowers that you particularly enjoy painting?

Tanvi Pathare: I truly enjoy painting roses and peonies. I think their overall forms are very intricate, and hence a good place to spend a few hours meditating over them.

Painting of peonies by Tanvi Pathare who is hosting a workshop at the Villa Lena in Tuscany
Painting of peonies by Tanvi Pathare

Influences of Location

Artsy Traveler: You grew up in India and now live in Florence. How have these locations inspired you? What changed in your work when you moved to Europe? 

Tanvi Pathare: I think having grown up in India, color (and a lot of it) was always a part of my visual aesthetic. Moving to Florence, I think my palette, became a bit more harmonized, though still having sharp color notes. My formal training in Florence helped me organize my ideas in a more cohesive way. Living in Florence, you are spoilt by the beauty around you. I think Mumbai and Florence will always be an integral part of my language as a painter.

Villa Lena Workshop

Artsy Traveler: As a workshop leader, what do you hope participants will take away from their experience painting with you?

Tanvi Pathare: hope that participants walk away with a new found appreciation of nature and flowers. Painting flowers is a beautiful way of truly appreciating their beauty because you spend much longer looking at them, versus just taking a picture of them and moving along..

White Roses by Tanvi Pathare who is hosting a workshop at the Villa Lena in Tuscany
White Roses by Tanvi Pathare

Tanvi Pathare’s Artwork

Tanvi’s art is truly exquisite. Her website beautifully showcases her work with various subjects: portraits, landscapes, and still lifes (lots of flowers in this category).

Here is a selection of some of her works I particularly liked. I can definitely see how she is influenced by masters such as Titian and Rembrandt and also by 19th century painters such as Henri Fantin-Latour and John Singer Sargent.

Landscapes by Tanvi Pathare

Tanvi’s website includes several paintings of the Tuscan landscape. Artists have been captivated by this landscape for centuries and no wonder. Tanvi captures the light and motion with fluid strokes and an eye for strong composition.

Landscape painting by Tanvi Pathare
The Valley in Lucca by Tanvi Pathare
Painting of the Mediterranean by Tanvi Pathare
The Mediterranean by Tanvi Pathare

Still Lifes by Tanvi Pathare

I often gravitate to still life paintings when I tour art museums. I especially enjoy flower paintings, perhaps because my mother painted flowers almost until she passed at the age of 93. So flower paintings have been a part of my life forever. Also, although I’m not the best of gardeners, I love watching flowers grow! Tanvi’s flower paintings really spoke to me. She captures the exuberance of their colors and the whimsy of their forms spilling out of vases and scattering petals. I feel like I can reach out and pluck a rose just before it falls.

Wine and Roses by Tanvi Pathare who is hosting a workshop at the Villa Lena in Tuscany
Wine and Roses by Tanvi Pathare
Of Peonies and Roses by Tanvi Pathare who is hosting a workshop at the Villa Lena in Tuscany
Of Peonies and Roses by Tanvi Pathare
A Wisteria Dream by Tanvi Pathare who is hosting a workshop at the Villa Lena in Tuscany
A Wisteria Dream by Tanvi Pathare
Still Life with Roses and Cherry Blossoms by Tanvi Pathare who is hosting a workshop at the Villa Lena in Tuscany
Still Life with Roses and Cherry Blossoms by Tanvi Pathare

To see more of Tanvi’s work, check her website.

About the Flower Painting Workshop at Villa Lena

The Flower Painting Workshop at Villa Lena runs from May 5th to May 10th, 2023. You stay at the Villa Lena and can participate in many more activities in addition to flower painting.

When I read the description about what participants in Tanvi’s floral painting workshop at the Villa Lena are going to do during their stay, I wish I could hop on a plane and attend myself. Alas, not this Spring, although I plan to visit the Villa Lena when I’m in Tuscany in the Fall of 2023.

Here’s what you’ll enjoy during your floral painting workshop:

  • 5 nights accommodation on site at Villa Lena 
  • Full board – farm to table feasting. 
  • 4 master classes on painting floral compositions with Tanvi Pathare
  • Wine tasting
  • Afternoon tea & baking lesson with in-house pastry chef 
  • Pasta cooking class
  • Olive oil tasting 
  • Guided tours of the VL orto & flower farm, with flower cutting session
  • Daily Yoga 
  • Access to Villa Lena facilities including 2 pools, 2 bars and beautiful common areas. 

That sounds like an amazing way to spend some time in Tuscany! Interested?

Click here for more information and to book.

Full disclosure: If you follow this link and book a stay at the Villa Lena, I earn a small commission. Thank you!

Flowers at the Villa Lena in Tuscany
Having a meal at the Villa Lena in Tuscany

Visit Villa Lena

Villa Lena is located in the heart of Tuscany between Pisa and Florence. The villa hosts retreats and offers agriturismo accommodation.

Aerial view of the pool at the Villa Lena in Tuscany
Villa Lena in Tuscany
View over the Tuscan countryside
Pool overlooking the Tuscany countryside at Villa Lena

Staying at the Villa Lena

The accommodations at Villa Lena are stylish and comfortable. I’m imagining myself sitting in front of that view doing some writing. I’ve always found Tuscany an incredibly inspiring place to work and can’t wait to get back there in Fall 2023.

view from a room at Villa Lena
View from a room at Vill Lena
A bedroom at the Villa Lena

Villa Lena Foundation

The villa is also affiliated with the Villa Lena Foundation, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting international contemporary artists working in art, music, film, literature, fashion, and other creative disciplines, and fostering opportunities for multi-disciplinary dialogue. If you’re an artist, you can apply to do at residency at the Villa Lena Foundation. Applications open soon for residencies in 2024. Check the Villa Lena Foundation website for details.

Art Studio at the Villa Lena Foundation
Art studio at the Villa Lena Foundation

Conclusion

Are you traveling to Tuscany this spring? Consider spending time at the Villa Lena learning flower painting with Tanvi Pathare. You’ll come away with a renewed appreciation of the beauty of nature and a painting or two that you’ve created.

Have you ever taken an art workshop or gone on a painting retreat? Share your experience and suggestions with other Artsy Travelers in the Comments below.

Here are some more posts about artists and artsy traveling in Tuscany:

Carol Cram in front of the National Gallery of Canada

National Gallery of Canada: Best Bets for the Artsy Traveler

Artsy Sightseeing, Canada, Destinations, Get Inspired, North America carolcram Leave a Comment on National Gallery of Canada: Best Bets for the Artsy Traveler

Last updated on March 15th, 2023 at 01:27 am

Every time I visit Ottawa, I take the opportunity to check out the National Gallery. It is truly a national treasure, and one of the reasons why I was very pleased when my niece told me they were moving to Ottawa with their family a few years ago. Now I have an excuse to visit Ottawa more often, which means I can spend more time at the National Gallery!

In this post, I share my top 20 favorite pieces. These are just the tip of the iceberg, chosen from room after glorious room of masterpieces in the Canadian collection. When you go, you’ll find many more pieces to marvel at.

Overview

The National Gallery of Canada is an excellent museum both inside and out. Outside, the striking glass structure built in 1988 echoes the shape of the library on Parliament Hill that it overlooks. Inside is a comprehensive collection of the best of the best of Canadian painting, particularly the Group of Seven and some notable moderns.

I visited the National Gallery of Canada with my daughter on a brilliant blue-sky day in early February 2023 after checking out Winterlude, eating my very first sugar shack maple-syrup lollilop (so delicious), and strolling past Parliament Hill (rated the #1 attraction in Ottawa on Trip Advisor!)

Carol Cram & Julia Simpson in front of the Parliament buildings in Ottawa, Canada
On Parliament Hill in Ottawa on a crystal-cold February day

Location of the National Gallery of Canada

The National Gallery is a short walk from Parliament Hill along the Rideau Canal and from the Byward Market. The map below shows the location of the gallery along with a few landmarks such as the Parliament Buildings, the Rideau Centre, and the Ottawa Art Gallery (also worth a visit).

Map courtesy of Wanderlog, the best trip planner app on iOS and Android

Meet Maman

On your way into the gallery, you can’t help noticing the massive sculpture by Louise Bourgeois. Called Maman and created in 1999, the giant egg-carrying arachnid cast in bronze was inspired by Bourgeois’s own mom. If you don’t much like spiders, you might want to walk quickly past Maman, but if you’re not too bothered, linger a while and take some striking pictures!

Carol & Maman

Touring the Canadian Collection

On my most recent visit to the National Gallery of Canada in February 2023, I entered the main Canadian collection from the moderns and traversed backwards to the colonial and pre-colonial eras. Usually, I start old and end new, but I found going backwards was a refreshing way to get a different perspective on the collection.

In addition to the large collection of Canadian art on the main floor, the National Gallery also includes a comprehensive collection of European and American art, and a large area devoted to contemporary work (most of which was kind of missable, to be honest).

Because I’m limiting this post to just 20 of my faves, I’m focusing only on the Canadian collection. Ready? Let’s start with the moderns.

Modern art–as opposed to contemporary art–includes works from the mid 20th century until about the 1970s. I’ve limited myself to five faves, presented in the order in which I came across them and listed by artist name rather than the name of the work.

Norval Morrisseau (called Copper Thunderhead)

Norval Morrisseau is credited with creating a completely new art movement inspired by non-European aesthetic conventions and iconography. His work is a visual translation of an Anishnaabe worldview that is based on oral tradition, individual experience, and heritage.

I don’t think anyone could look at a painting by Morrisseau and not be enchanted. The vibrant colors and intriguing shapes, along with his original depictions of animals and people, are irresistible. His work is immediately recognizable and so compelling. This painting was the first I gravitated to when I entered the room.

Artist and Shaman Between Two Worlds by Norval Morrisseau (called Copper Thunderbird) at the National Gallery of Canada.
Norval Morrisseau (called Copper Thunderhead), Artist and Shaman between Two Worlds (1980)

Alex Colville

Alex Colville’s hyper-realistic paintings depict everday life in the Maritimes. This piece is one of my favorites (and probably Colville’s most famous) because it beautifully captures the feel of a sunny, breezy day in summer. Also, what is the woman looking at? Prince Edward Island? Another boat? Us? It’s enigmatic and yet relatable. The painting depicts Colville in the background and his wife Rhoda in the foreground holding the binoculars.

To Prince Edward Island by Alex Colville at the National Gallery of Canada
Alex Colville, To Prince Edward Island (1965)

Art McKay

I was unfamiliar with Art McKay, although my husband, painter Gregg Simpson, has since told me that he met him back in the 1970s. I included his work simply because I really liked it. It reminds me of a Pollock but with more fluid movement. Apparently, McKay was inspired to pursue abstraction after meeting the American abstract painter Barnett Newman in 1959.

In this painting, the limited palette (black, white, blue) produces a compellingly energetic work that drew me in. I wanted to sit with it for a while, to feel the paint swirling around me like clouds seen from outer space.

Flat Blue, Flat White, Stove Enamel by Art McKay at the National Gallery of Canada
Art McKay, Flat Blue, Flat White, Stove Enamel (1960)

Jean Paul Riopelle

The National Gallery of Canada includes several paintings by Jean Paul Riopelle in its collection, which is good news for me because I’m a big fan of his work. This massive triptych is so fabulously joyous. Riopelle used a palette knife to apply paint directly to the surface using free and “automatic” gestures. He is known as the most ambitious artist in the Automatistes movement.

The title of the piece, “Pavane”, refers to the 16th century Spanish dance that is characterized by a stately and processional rhythm. And this painting fairly pulsates with rhythm.

I couldn’t do the piece justice with a single photograph and so took this video.

Jean Paul Riopelle, Pavane (1954)

Kathleen Munn

I had never heard of Kathleen Munn (1887-1974) whom I discovered was one of the leading modernist painters in Toronto in the 1920s. I’m happy to see that the National Gallery is including more women in its collection. This appealing piece reminds me of a Franz Marc with its colorful shapes and abstracted landscape elements.

Kathleen Munn, Untitled (1926-28)

Group of Seven & Friends at the National Gallery

The Group of Seven are justifiably famous for creating paintings that showed the Canadian landscape to the world back in the early 20th century. The Group of Seven (also known as the Algonquin School) includes Frank Carmichael, Lawren Harris, A. Y. Jackson, Frank Johnston, Arthur Lismer, J. E. H. MacDonald, and Fred Varley. Other artists associated with the group are A. J. Casson, Tom Thomson, and Emily Carr.

The National Gallery devotes several rooms to showcasing the work of these artists. I’ve selected my favorites in no particular order, except that I start with my fave, Lawren Harris.

Lawren Harris

Lawren Harris is hands-down my most beloved Group of Seven artist. I particularly appreciate his later work when he moved away from landscape and toward a spiritually-inspired form of abstraction.

The painting below is an example of his later work when he was focusing on producing abstract art using geometric compositions with layered planes.

Abstraction 1939 by Lawren Harris at the National Gallery of Canada
Lawren Harris, Abstraction (1939)

This piece is one of Harris’s most famous. It depicts the north shore of Lake Superior and was painted in 1926 when Harris traveled to the region with fellow Group of Seven artist A. Y. Jackson.

North Shore, Lake Superior by Lawren Harris at the National Gallery of Canada
Lawren Harris, North Shore, Lake Superior (1926)

Call me a tourist (an artsy tourist), but I couldn’t resist taking a selfie in front of this most iconic of paintings.

Carol Cram in front of North Shore, Lake Superior, a painting by Lawren Harris at the National Gallery of Canada
Geeking out at the National Gallery of Canada

J. E. H. MacDonald

Apparently, this painting by J. E. H. MacDonald was panned by the critics when it was first exhibited in the 1920s. One critic even compared the painting to a huge tomato salad. That seems a bit harsh! I was immediately drawn to this painting because of its exuberant depiction of fecundity. Some of the plants are decaying, some are blooming, and all are jumbled together in a glorious mess of in-your-face nature. It’s awesome!

The Tangled Garden by J.E.H. MacDonald at the National Gallery of Canada
J. E. H. MacDonald, The Tangled Garden (1916)

A. Y. Jackson

How much more Canadian can this get–red maple leaves in front of a rushing river. The painting is even called “The Red Maple” and is based on a sketch from nature produced along the Oxtongue River in Algonquin Park.

The Red Maple by A. Y. Jackson at the National Gallery of Canada
A. Y. Jackson, The Red Maple (1914)

Arthur Lismer

Is this iconically Ontario or what? To me, this depiction of Georgian Bay in a storm really captures the swirling clouds and choppy waves of the Great Lakes region. It really couldn’t be anywhere else in Canada!

A September Gale, Georgian Bay by Arthur Lismer at the National Gallery of Canada
Arthur Lismer, A September Gale, Georgian Bay (1921)

F. H. Varley

Same with this piece, which also depicts a storm on Georgian Bay. The Group of Seven artists are credited with being quintessentially Canadian, but really, they are at heart Ontarians. As someone born and bred in British Columbia, I don’t particularly resonate with the Ontario landscape. However, I can appreciate it and also how its depiction by the Group of Seven artists showcased a corner of Canada’s vast landscape to the world.

Stormy Weather, Georgian Bay by F. H. Varley at the National Gallery of Canada
F. H. Varley, Stormy Weather, Georgian Bay (1921)

Franklin Carmichael

Carmichael is my second favorite Group of Seven artist after Lawren Harris; I even have a print of one of his paintings in my office. See how he smashes together landscape elements to produce a visual earthquake for the viewer. You can feel the seismic energy of the rain, the snow, and the wind in his paintings.

Snow Louds by Franklin Carmichael at the National Gallery of Canada
Franklin Carmichael, Snow Clouds (1938)

Tom Thomson

Although he was not formally considered a member of the Group of Seven, the paintings by Tom Thomson are pretty much synonymous with most people’s idea of Group of Seven landscapes. The National Gallery includes a large display of several dozen of Thomson’s small canvases. This video gives a good idea of the variety and quality of these exquisite gems.

Small paintings by Tom Thomson

Emily Carr

The other most famous artist who was not part of the Group of Seven, but definitely associated with them, is BC’s own Emily Carr. The National Gallery includes several of her pieces. Most depict the brooding West Coast rainforest–a landscape I definitely resonate with since it’s the one I see outside my window as I write this! A massive cedar tree is directly in my line of sight. It doesn’t take much imagination to see it as Carr did–a swirling, living mass of green energy thrusting skyward. Here are two of her pieces that I particularly liked.

Something Unnamed by Emily Carr at the National Gallery of Canada
Emily Carr, Something Unnamed (1937)
Totems Emily Carr at the National Gallery of Canada
Emily Carr, Totems (1930)

Indigenous Art

The National Gallery does a good job of including several fabulous pieces of indigenous art in the collection of paintings by artists of mostly European descent. Here are two pieces I admired.

Raven Sun Transformation Mask by Marven G. Tallio
Marven G. Tallio, Raven Sun Transformation Mask (1966)
Spirit of the Forest - Mother Nature by John Marston (Qap-u-luq) at the National Gallery of Canada
John Marston (QAP’U’LUQ), Spirit of the Forest – Mother Nature (2013)

Other Notable Pieces

While the stars of the show at the National Gallery are the paintings by the Group of Seven and the pieces of indigenous art, I saw some new-to-me pieces worth mentioning.

Here is yet another depiction of Lake Superior (there are many of them in the National Gallery!), which I liked because of the way in which the houses are all jumbled together in front of a massive landscape and because it’s painted by a woman artist I’d never heard of, Yvonne McKague Housser. She painted this piece just a few years after Lawren Harris made the Lake Superior region famous.

Rossport, Lake Superior by Yvonne McKague Housser at the Natoinal Gallery of Canada
Yvonne McKague Housser, Rossport, Lake Superior (1929)

This piece from the 19th century of loggers clear-cutting the area where I now live resonated because of the interesting way in which the artist depicted the figures next to the logs. The painting catches one moment during the workday. No one is posing; no one cares about posing. They are just getting on with a brutal day’s labor.

Logging by George A. Reid at the National Gallery of Canada
George A. Reid, Logging (1888)

Yes, I’m a sucker for a good still life, and I particularly liked this piece by Quebec artist Joseph Légaré. Apparently, it’s the first still life executed in Canada, although I’m not sure how anyone can be 100% sure of that! Anyway, it’s a nice painting.

Still-Life with Grapes by Joseph Legare at the National Gallery of Canada
Joseph Légaré, Still-life with Grapes (1826)

And Finally – A Shout-Out to the Gift Shop

I love a good museum gift shop and the one at the National Gallery of Canada is right up there in my top ten all-time favorite museum gift shops. There’s a wonderful selection of quality gift items, many with indigenous designs and the assurance that the money actually goes to the artists. Hopefully, that is true because in my last two trips to the National Gallery (February 2023 and December 2021), I purchased several indigenously-designed items there.

Definitely check it out after you’ve toured the National Gallery. I dare you to leave without buying something!

Practical Information

The National Gallery of Canada is located at 380 Sussex Drive in Ottawa (see #1 on the map at the beginning of this post). It is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 5 pm (8 pm on Thursday), and closed on Monday. Adults cost $20; seniors $18; and 24 and under & students $10. Children under 11 are free.

Conclusion

The National Gallery of Canada’s permanent collection is stunning and extremely safe–some would say conservative. The focus is on the crowd-pleasing paintings by the Group of Seven (and hey, I was pleased), but there are very few paintings by more recent Canadian artists. Still, it’s a great collection and worth a few hours of your time when visiting Ottawa, a city with its fair share of excellent museums.

Have you visited the National Gallery of Canada? What are some of your favorites? Share in the comments below.

Other Posts About Great Art Museums

View of Fredericksborg Castle near Copenhagen in Denmark

Three Recommended Day Trips from Copenhagen

Artsy Sightseeing, Denmark, Destinations, Get Inspired carolcram 1 Comment on Three Recommended Day Trips from Copenhagen

Last updated on April 1st, 2023 at 03:48 pm

Consider alloting time during your stay in Copenhagen for taking day trips. You’ll find plenty to see and do in the city to fill at least three days, but after that, it’s time to venture farther afield. Your Copenhagen Card (see more below) is your best friend. Use it to take trains all over the greater Capital region and to visit some of Denmark’s premier castles.

In this post, I focus on three day trips from Copenhagen: Frederiksborg Castle, Kronborg Castle, and the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. Each site is a thirty-to-forty-minute train journey from Copenhagen.

Armed with a Copenhagen Card (a must-buy – see below), I spent three half-days of my week-long stay in Copenhagen venturing outside the city limits to sample three Artsy Traveler experiences.

Location of Recommended Day Trips

The map below shows the locations of the three recommended day trips. You could possibly see all three in one day if you’re traveling by car, but that might be overkill! I suggest taking just one trip a day so you have time to enjoy the locations and still get back to Copenhagen in time to take in one or two more local sights and then enjoy a leisurely dinner.

On the map below, #1 is the Copenhagen Hovedbanegården, aka the Central Station. You’ll be catching the trains from here.

Trip map created with Wanderlog, the best trip planner app on iOS and Android

Frederiksborg Castle

The largest Renaissance complex in the Nordic region is Frederiksborg Castle (#2 on the map above) in Hillerød, about 30 minutes outside Copenhagen. The castle is one of the must-do day trips from Copenhagen, particularly if the weather is fine. Set in a lake and surrounded by gardens, the castle is extremely photogenic.

Carol Cram in front of Fredericksberg Castle near Hillerød outside Copenhagen - a perfect day trip from Copenhagen
Carol arrives at Frederiksborg Castle during her day trip from Copenhagen
Entrance to Fredericksberg Castle near Hillerød outside Copenhagen
Walked over the bridge to the entrance to Frederiksborg Castle

Inside the castle is room after sumptuous room. Wear your walking shoes–it’s a big place! I toured the castle fairly quickly because I wanted to get outside to view the castle from the lake. However, if you’re interested in Danish history, the castle could easily fill an hour or two of your time.

Here’s a selection of a few of the rooms and displays I wandered through.

Sumptuous royal bedroom in Fredericksberg castle
One of many sumptuous royal apartments
An 18th-century footman is happy to pose for photos

Outside the castle, you can tour the gardens and then catch the cute little launch that goes from a dock near the castle across the lake to the town of Hillerød. The cost of the launch (along with the castle entrance and all busses and trains) is included with the marvelous Copenhagen Card.

Launch that takes guests across the lake to the town of Hillerød
Cost of the ferry across the lake is included with the Copenhagen card
Carol Cram on the launch across the lake at Fredericksborg Castle during her day trip from Copenhagen
On the launch across the lake at Frederiksborg Castle

As I was crossing the lake, the sun came out with magical results.

Fredericksberg Castle on a sunny day and reflected in the lake - perfect for a day trip from Copenhagen
Fredericksborg Castle

Hillerød

For your day trip to Frederiksborg Castle, you’ll catch the train from Copenhagen to Hillerød and then from the station, take a bus or walk to the castle. Many of the people getting off the train are also tourists and heading for the castle, so it’s pretty easy to just follow the crowd to the bus stop. If in doubt, ask someone who looks like a local. I never encountered anyone in Denmark who did not speak excellent English.

After touring the castle, you can either take the bus back to Hillerød or, like I did, catch the launch across the lake. It docks at Hillerød. Wander through the attractive little town, grab a coffee in the central square, browse a few shops, and then walk to the train station for the journey back to Copenhagen. The entire trip to the castle and Hillerød lasts only a few hours unless you are a super-fan and want to examine every part of the castle open to the public and also walk the miles of pathways in the formal gardens.

The charming town of Hillerød with the castle across the lake
The charming town of Hillerød with the castle across the lake
Signposts in Hillerød leading me back to the station
Signposts in Hillerød leading me back to the station

Frederiksborg Castle Practical Information

Frederiksborg Castle is open every day throughout the year from 10:00 to 17:00 April to October and 11:00 to 15:00 November to March. Admission is 90 DKK for adults, but you can use your Copenhagen Card (see below for details). The museum is located in Hillerød, a 40-minute ride on S-train line A from Copenhagen. From Hillerød Station you can walk to the castle (View the route here) or take the local busses 301 (direction: Ullerød) or 302 (direction: Sophienlund) and get off at the stop “Frederiksborg Slot”.

Kronborg Castle

Located on the sound between Sweden and Denmark about 40 minutes north of Copenhagen, Kronborg Castle (#3 on the map above) and the charming town of Helsingor are both great choices for a day trip from Copenhagen. In fact, if you only have time for one of the three day trips presented in this post, I’d choose Kronborg. While the castle itself is not as large and imposing as Frederiksborg Castle, the town of Helsingor has more to offer.

Also, if you’re a Hamlet fan, then you have to visit Kronborg Castle, which was the setting for Shakespeare’s play. It’s easy to imagine Prince Hamlet wandering through the lofty halls of the castle and looking out to sea, brooding and plotting revenge.

If you have a car, you can even zip across on the ferry to Helsingborg in Sweden and from there carry on north to Gothenburg and even Stockholm.

Touring Kronborg Castle

Kronborg Castle towers above the narrow sound between the coasts of Denmark and Sweden. It’s a Renaissance castle complete with spires and towers, and is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Courtyard inside Kronborg Castle, a great destination for a day trip from Copenhagen
Courtyard instide Kronborg Castle

Inside the castle are rooms full of period furnishings. The prevailing feeling is a bit starker than Frederiksborg Castle. It’s worth touring, but doesn’t require a lot of time.

Bedroom in Kronborg Castle
Bedroom in Kronborg Castle
Costumed guide talks about food at Kronborg Castle
Costumed guide talks about food at Kronborg Castle

The views from the castle over the sound to Sweden on the far shore are lovely on a clear day. Check out the clouds!

View from Kronborg Castle toward Sweden during a day trip from Copenhagen
View from Kronborg Castle toward Sweden

Kronborg Castle Practical Information

Kronborg Castle is open daily from 10:00 to 17:00 May to October and from 11:00 to 15:00 November to April. Admission is 125 DKK for adults, but you can use your Copenhagen Card (see below for details). The castle is located in Helsingør, a 40-minute train ride from Copenhagen. From the station, you can walk about ten minutes to the castle.

Helsingør

I enjoyed wandering around Helsingør. It’s not at all touristy; the vast majority of the people out soaking up the sunny September day were locals. The harbor area with its ships and Maritime Museum are worth lingering in during your day trip from Copenhagen.

Lively harbor with tall ships in Helsingør
Lively harbor with tall ships in Helsingør

Also view murals on buildings throughout the town. I particularly enjoyed seeing the one of Hamlet holding Yorick’s skull.

Colorful mural of in Helsingør in the 16th century
Colorful mural of Helsingør in the 16th century
Close-up of Hamlet in the prow of a ship in a mural
Close-up of Hamlet in the prow of a ship in a mural

I stopped for lunch on a pedestrian street full of outdoor cafes and enjoyed three scrumptious Smørrebrød – open-faced sandwiches, along with a strong and satisfying Danish beer.

As in many restaurants that serve Smørrebrød, I was invited to go check out a mouth-watering display of the tasty sandwiches and then choose the number and kind I wanted. Each of the three I chose was a winner.

Three tastey smørrebrød for lunch in Helsingør
Smørrebrød for lunch in Helsingør

I happened to arrive in Helsingør when locals were celebrating the Golden Jubilee of Queen Margrethe. There were lots of Danish flags and a parade!

Danish flag as part of celebrations of the Golden Jubilee of the Queen
Danes celebrating the Golden Jubilee of the Queen
Parade for the Golden Jubilee in Helsingør
Parade for the Golden Jubilee in Helsingør

A good sightseeing strategy if you want to see both Kronborg Castle and the Louisiana Museum of Art on a day trip from Copenhagen is to do both on the same day. They are quite close together in the same geographical area (north of Copenhagen). In fact, you take the same train from Copenhagen. Go to Kronborg Castle first and then backtrack to the Louisiana Museum or go the other way around. Bear in mind that you’ll find more and cheaper lunch options in Helsignor. At the Louisiana Museum, you only have the fancy restaurant at the museum (excellent food but not cheap!).

Frederiksborg & Kronborg Day Tours

You can choose to take a guided day trip from Copenhagen that includes both Frederiksborg Castle and Kronborg Castle. This tour also goes to Roskilde where you’ll tour the Viking Ship Museum.

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art

The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art (#4 on the map) is about a 30-minute train ride north of Copenhagen and is world-renowned as one of Europe’s best modern art museums. I’ll confess that I found the exhibitions a tad underwhelming. However, the setting of the museum on the North Sea and the many outdoor sculptures are fabulous and well worth the trip.

Founded by Knud W. Jensen to house Danish modern art, the museum opened in 1958. Within a few years, the focus shifted from featuring predominantly Danish art to becoming an international museum that featured internationally renowned artists.

Check what exhibitions are on, but even if they don’t appeal, visit the museum anyway. It makes for a lovely morning out from Copenhagen. You reach it by train (covered by the Copenhagen Card) followed by a pleasant 20-minute stroll along a suburban road to the museum.

After visiting the exhibitions, head outside where the real stars of the museum are located. Here’s a selection of sculptures dotted all around the large property.

Modern sculpture at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art with a view toward Sweden
View toward Sweden
Stone spheres outside in the sculpture garden at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Stone spheres in the sculpture garden
Large mobile in the sculpture garden at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Captivating mobile overlooking the Sound
Black cut-out sculpture garden at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Cool cutout sculpture
Granite sculpture in the sculpture garden at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Granite sculpture
Miro sculpture in the sculpture garden at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Is it a Miro?

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art Practical Information

The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art is located in Humlebæk about 30 minutes north of Copenhagen. Catch the train from the main train station and then walk about twenty minutes to the museum. If you have a car, you can drive there. Ample parking is provided. The museum is open Tuesday to Friday from 10:00 to 22:00 and Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 to 18:00 (closed Monday) and covered by the Copenhagen Card.

Purchase the Copenhagen Card

Not all tourist cards are great value, but the Copenhagen Card is definitely worth purchasing. It covers so much of what you’ll want to see in Copenhagen, including all three of the sites and all the transportation options covered in this post, dozens museums (there are a LOT of museums in Copenhagen), and attractions such as Tivoli Gardens (worth a visit to see the lights in the evening). You can use the Copenhagen Card on the local subways. It truly is a bargain and a major time saver.

I almost never buy city cards, but I’m very glad I purchased the Copenhagen Card. Having it saved me loads of time, made sightseeing a pleasure, and took all the stress out of riding public transit. It’s a winner!

Click the image below to purchase the Copenhagen card.

Conclusion

Have you visited museums in Copenhagen? Which ones did you visit and recommend? Please share in the comments below.

Here are more posts about awesome museums to visit in England and Europe:

A Trio of Must-See Museums in Copenhagen

Artsy Sightseeing, Denmark, Destinations, Get Inspired carolcram Leave a Comment on A Trio of Must-See Museums in Copenhagen

Last updated on March 11th, 2023 at 06:37 pm

Copenhagen museums (visit them with the Copenhagen Card) are world-class and worth a trip to Denmark’s fabulous capital city just to visit them. There are several must-sees, but for this post, I focus on my three favorites: the Design Museum, the Danish National Museum, and the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, which is about thirty minutes north of Copenhagen (super easy to get to).

Armed with a Copenhagen Card (a must-buy – see below), I ventured forth into the bustling streets of Copenhagen for three amazing Artsy Traveler experiences.

This map was created with Wanderlog, an itinerary planner on iOS and Android

Design Museum

Called the Designmuseum Danmark, this museum is absolutely stunning (see #1 on the map above). Even if you’ve never in your life thought about design, put this museum on your list of must-sees while in Copenhagen. It tells the story of Danish design in room after room of artful displays of everything from furniture to objects to textiles to cutlery to posters, and a lot more.

Gregg and I never wanted to leave, although after our visit we did enjoy relaxing in the lovely courtyard and drinking lattes served by an enthusiastic young man. He was so pleased when we raved to him about how much we loved the museum.

Breezy and relaxing outdoor area at the Designmuseum Danmark
Breezy and relaxing outdoor area at the Designmuseum Danmark
Gregg relaxing after touring the Designmuseum Danmark
Gregg relaxing after touring the Designmuseum Danmark

The many rooms in the Designmuseum Danmark are arranged around themed exhibitions that run for quite a long time so they’re likely to still be on if you visit Copenhagen in 2023. For the most up-to-date information about current exhibitions, check the museum’s website.

Each display is accompanied by informative explanations in both Danish and English. Here’s an overview of the exhibitions we saw at the Designmuseum Danmark.

The Future is Present

The first exhibition we entered explored many of the ways in which designers around the world are finding solutions to challenges such as climate change, refugee flows, pandemics, and more. How do we live together in communities, relate to each other, and interact with our environments? And what role does design play?

The many displays are both beautiful and thought-provoking. One of my favorites is this display of biodegradable urns. The pendant attached to the urn is planted so that loved ones can enjoy “the growing flowers and a tree in a place for conversation and remembrance.”

Biodegradable urns - a way to remember loved ones long after their passing
Biodegradable urns – a way to remember loved ones long after their passing

Wonder

This exhibition featured objects from some of the Designmuseum’s many collections. The exhibition tells the story of how a thing becomes an object in a private collection or in a museum. Each display is imaginatively presented and accompanied by excellent commentary. You could spend a lot of time in the Designmuseum Danmark!

Here’s a sampling of some of the objects in the Wonder exhibition.

Gorgeously designed chair from the 19th Century at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Gorgeously designed chair from the 19th Century
Art nouveau necklace at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Art nouveau necklace

The Magic of Form

Our favorite exhibition was The Magic of Form that took us on a fabulous journey through Danish design history. As anyone who has seen a piece of Danish modern furniture knows, Denmark and design go hand in hand. The Danes have a knack for creating marvelously designed furniture that is both beautiful and practical.

The exhibition is massive–room after room of objects and pieces of furniture that follow the historical development of Danish design from around 1900 to the present. Every time we entered a new room, we gasped in wonder. Not only were the objects themselves stunning, but also the way in which they were presented raised my experience of museum display techniques to new heights.

Here’s a selection of a few of the rooms and displays we wandered through.

Modern furniture display at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Danish Modern chairs imaginatively displayed
Lamps and vases at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Vases, a modern light fixture, and an abstract painting
Sixties-era furniture at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Chock full of color and form
Creative display of furniture at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Danish Modern run amok
Modern lamps at the Design Museum in Copenhagenlamps
Ultra modern Danish Modern chic
Modern sculpture at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Colorful sculpture

Other Exhibitions

When we toured the Designmuseum Danmark, we also saw two other exhibitions. The Table, Cover Thyself exhibition of plates and cultlery showed a myriad selection of table settings including plates, cutlery, tureens, figurines, and more. I particularly loved these two jugs.

Coffee and tea pots at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Two beautifully designed coffee jugs

The Powerful Patterns exhibition explored patterns as an artform and included a wealth of textiles and costumes, including this beautiful dress.

Elaborate embroidered gown at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Dress with exquisite embroidery

The Designmuseum Danmark was one of the many highlights of our week in Copenhagen. I can hardly wait to return to see what new exhibitions are being featured.

And to top off my visit, I discovered that even a trip to the ladies room was fraught with design. Here’s what I saw when I look up from where I was, um, sitting:

Plastic chair above a toilet stall at the Design Museum in Copenhagen
Chair suspended over a toilet stall at the Designmuseum Danmark

The Danes have a sense of humor for sure!

Design Museum Practical Information

The Designmuseum Danmark is open from 10 am to 6 pm Tuesday to Sunday (closed Monday). Admission is 130 DKK for adults, but you can use your Copenhagen Card (see below for details). The museum is located at Bredgade 68 and makes a great stop on the way to see the Little Mermaid in the Copenhagen harbor.

The National Museum of Denmark

The Nationalmuseet (#2 on the map at the top of this post) is another major museum in which you could get lost for hours. In fact, we ran out of steam after touring the awesome collection of prehistory and Viking artifacts and didn’t see all the museum has to offer. All the more reason to return!

But even if you, like us, only manage to tour half the museum, make sure it’s the half that includes the Danish prehistory and Viking collections. Each display is cleverly mounted and includes interesting commentary in Danish and English.

Danish Prehistory Collection

I have a soft spot for prehistory museums and monuments, and visit them whenever I can. Check out my post on seven of my fave prehistory spots in Europe. Given my predelictions (and Gregg’s too), we naturally made a beeline for the Danish Prehistory collection.

What a treasure trove!

The exhibition features objects made prior to 1050 AD and extending way, way back into the misty mists of time (like 6000 BCE!) and includes unique archaeological treasures like the Trundholm Chariot of the Sun, the Egtved girl’s grave, the Gundestrup cauldron, the Hoby tomb, and more.

Twenty-four rooms arranged in a large square enclosing the gardens take you from the earliest years up to the Viking era. I was surprised and enthralled by the age of many of the prehistoric objects in the first several rooms. A highlight is the skeleton of a massive bull elk that perished in a bog over 8500 years ago.

Ancient sculpture of an elk at the Danish National Museum
The Tåderup Elk at the Danish National Museum

Here are two of my favorite displays, but there were many more. You could spend a very long time in the Danish prehistory rooms.

Polished figures from prehistory at the Danish National Museum
Polished figures from prehistoric grave sites
Viksø helmets from the Bronze Age at the Danish National Museum
Viksø helmets from the Bronze Age

Viking Exhibition

Eventually, you’ll arrive at the Viking exhibition to be confronted by a model of a full-size Viking ship (and it’s really big!). The ship dominates the large room that includes displays that trace Denmark’s huge contribution to world history. At one time, Vikings controlled vast swathes of Europe, extending all the way to North America. A wall-size map at the beginning of the exhibition shows how far their influence extended.

Viking costumes at the Danish National Museum
Sartorial elegance of the Vikings; a portion of the ship model is in the background

The Danes are very proud of their Viking heritage, as evidenced by the care they’ve taken to mount such a spectacular exhibition.

The Raid Experience

Included in the Viking exhibition is a new multi-media experience called “The Raid” that invites guests to “hop aboard and join the Vikings on an adventurous raid.”

“The Raid” isn’t actually a ride. You walk through a series of rooms, stopping in each to watch a 360-degree projection accompanied by commentary in English. The projections tell the exciting story of Björn Ironside, the legendary Viking who led 62 ships on an ill-fated journey to Rome.

Along the way, they plunder and pillage as Vikings are wont to do, but never actually make it to Rome. They do make it into the Mediterranean, however. Unfortunately, on their way out again, they are almost destroyed by large firebombs raining down upon them from the cliffs above the Strait of Gibraltar. Poor Bjorn perishes and very few ships make it back to Denmark. So ends Bjorn’s raid, only to be revived 1500-odd years later for tourists to wonder at.

Poster for The Viking Raid attraction at the Danish National Museum
Poster for “The Raid” at the Danish National Museum

What Else to See at the National Museum

The museum includes exhibitions from Denmark’s Middle Ages and Renaissance, the histories of Denmark, an antique collection, the Children’s Museum, Voices from the Colonies, and a Coin and Medal Collection in addition to special exhibitions. Everything is state-of-the-art, a real testament to recent advances in museumology.

I need to go back!

Canal in Copenhagen
On the way to the National Museum of Denmark

National Museum of Denmark Practical Information

The National Museum of Denmark is located in the Prince’s Palace at Ny Vestergade 10. It’s within walking distance from Nyhavn where I recommend you stay. The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00 (closed Monday) and covered by the Copenhagen Card.

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art

The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art (#3 on the map at the top of this post) is about a 30-minute train ride north of Copenhagen. It’s world-renowned as one of Europe’s best modern art museums, and therefore a must-visit for the Artsy Traveler!

That said, I confess that I found the exhibitions a tad underwhelming. However, the setting of the museum on the North Sea and the many outdoor sculptures are fabulous and well worth the trip.

The food in the restaurant overlooking the water is also excellent!

Founded by Knud W. Jensen to house Danish modern art, the museum opened in 1958. Within a few years, the focus shifted from featuring predominantly Danish art to becoming an international museum that showcased internationally renowned artists.

Check what exhibitions are on, but even if they don’t appeal, visit the museum anyway. It makes for a lovely morning out from Copenhagen. You reach it by train (covered by the Copenhagen Card) followed by a pleasant 20-minute stroll along a suburban road to the museum.

After visiting the exhibitions, head outside where the real stars of the museum are located. Here’s a selection of sculptures dotted all around the large property.

Carol Cram in front of a modern sculpture at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Granite sphere in the sculpture garden at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Huge mobile in the sculpture garden overlooking the water with Sweden in the distance at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Black cut-out modern sculpture at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Granite sculpture at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Miro-inspired bird man sculpture at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art Practical Information

The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art is located in Humlebæk about 30 minutes north of Copenhagen. Catch the train from the main train station and then walk about twenty minutes to the museum. If you have a car, you can drive there. Ample parking is provided. The museum is open Tuesday to Friday from 10:00 to 22:00 and Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 to 18:00 (closed Monday) and covered by the Copenhagen Card.

Purchase the Copenhagen Card

Not all tourist cards are great value, but the Copenhagen Card is definitely worth purchasing. It covers so much of what you’ll want to see in Copenhagen, including all three of the museums covered in this post along with dozens more museums (there are a LOT of museums in Copenhagen), attractions such as Tivoli Gardens (worth a visit to see the lights in the evening), and all your transportation in and around Copenhagen. You can use it on the local subways and on trains that go farther afield to popular destinations such as Frederiksburg Castle, Kronburg Castle, and the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. It truly is a bargain and a major time-saver.

I almost never buy city cards, but I’m very glad I purchased the Copenhagen Card. Having it saved me loads of time, made sightseeing a pleasure, and took all the stress out of riding public transit. It’s a winner!

Click the image below to purchase the Copenhagen card.

Check out more tours and things to do in marvelous Copenhagen.

Conclusion

Have you visited museums in Copenhagen? Which ones did you visit and recommend? Please share in the comments below.

Here are more posts about awesome museums to visit in England and Europe:

Exterior of the National Gallery in London

London’s National Gallery: The Best of the Best

Artsy Sightseeing, Destinations, England carolcram Leave a Comment on London’s National Gallery: The Best of the Best

Last updated on March 11th, 2023 at 08:10 pm

I love the National Gallery in London! It’s small enough to enjoy in a few hours without getting exhausted (unlike the Louvre), and yet big enough to include an astonishing collection of masterpieces from the Middle Ages to the Impressionists.

Also, it’s free, which is amazing considering that every other major art museum in Europe charges at least 20 to 30 Euros.

I dropped by the National Gallery fairly late in the day and so only had an hour to spend before it closed. An hour is not enough, but if it’s all you have, you won’t be disappointed.

I wandered in a trance from room to room, eyes tearing up as every turn brought so many favorites before me. An impressive number of biggies are included in the sumptuous rooms.

I hadn’t visited London’s National Gallery for several years, and so was doubly excited to greet so many old friends and to discover several new pieces to admire.

In this post, I showcase some of the highlights.

Note that the images are downloaded from the National Gallery’s website, which allows display of its images for personal use, including blogs. I was glad to discover this because my own photographs are sometimes a bit crooked and ill-lit! Thank you, National Gallery.

Pieces by most of the major painters, including Giotto, Duccio, Lorenzetti, and Lippi, are included in the National Gallery’s medieval collection. One of the reasons why I love medieval Italian painting is because of how the artists depicted buildings. While perspective is generally lacking, the artists of this period captured the essence of medieval towns as a hodgepodge of arches and towers built at varying angles and heights. The arrangements communicate the feeling of a medieval town, rather than just a realistic representation, that still rings true today when you visit places like Siena and San Gimignano in Tuscany.

The Healing of the Man Born Blind by Duccio

I chose this painting because of how Duccio di Buoninsegna depicted the buildings behind the people. I love how the pastel colors of the buildings in the background contrast with the more vibrant robes of the central figures.

This painting is a small panel–one of 54 minutely detailed narrative scenes that was included in Duccio’s Maestà. A massive work, Maestà is considered one of the most ambitious altarpieces ever created. Most of the rest of the altarpiece is on display in the Museo dell’opera del Duomo in Siena. Read about it in my post about top cathedrals in Europe in which I include Siena Cathedral adjacent to the Museo. If you’re in Siena, the Museo dell’opera del Duomo (the museum of the cathedral) is a must-see.

When the Maestà was completed in 1311, it was carried through the streets of Siena. One of the characters in my novel The Towers of Tuscany reminiscences about seeing the procession when she was a young girl.

Duccio The Healing of the Man born Blind 1307/8-11 Egg tempera on wood, 45.1 x 46.7 cm National Gallery in London
Duccio The Healing of the Man born Blind 1307/8-11 Egg tempera on wood, 45.1 x 46.7 cm Bought, 1883 NG1140 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG1140

A Group of Four Poor Clares by Ambrogio Lorenzetti

Lorenzetti was active in Siena during the 1300s and likely died of the plague that hit Siena in 1348. I really like his work and so was delighted to discover this piece in the National Gallery. It’s a fragment of a fresco that was discovered under whitewash in 1855. I love the realism of the faces and their pensive expressions.

Ambrogio Lorenzetti A Group of Four Poor Clares possibly about 1336-40 Fresco with areas of secco, 70.4 × 63.4 cm at the National Gallery in London
Ambrogio Lorenzetti A Group of Four Poor Clares possibly about 1336-40 Fresco with areas of secco, 70.4 × 63.4 cm Bought, 1878 NG1147 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG1147

Italian Renaissance at the National Gallery

So many masterpieces, so little time! I was rushed by the time I got to the rooms containing some of my favorite artists from the Italian Renaissance, most notably Leonardo da Vinci and Botticelli, so I was unable to linger as long as I would have liked. Still, I managed to soak up the Renaissance vibe.

The Burlington House Cartoon by Leonardo da Vinci

I remember the first time I saw this piece when I was student at Reading University in the 1970s. Reading was only 40 minutes by train from London so I often went up to enjoy the art museums.

The Burlington House Cartoon is a large drawing made in preparation for a painting and is the only surviving large-scale drawing done by da Vinci. I like the contrast of rough and finished in the drawing. Some parts, such as the face of Mary, are beautifully detailed and evocative while others, such as the hand of Saint Anne (Mary’s mother) pointing heavenward, are barely sketched in.

Exhibited in a small, dimly lit room, the piece just glows.

Leonardo da Vinci The Burlington House Cartoon about 1499-1500 Charcoal (and wash?) heightened with white chalk on paper, mounted on canvas, 141.5 x 104.6 cm at the National Gallery in London
Leonardo da Vinci The Burlington House Cartoon about 1499-1500 Charcoal (and wash?) heightened with white chalk on paper, mounted on canvas, 141.5 x 104.6 cm Purchased with a special grant and contributions from the Art Fund, The Pilgrim Trust, and through a public appeal organised by the Art Fund, 1962 NG6337 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG6337

Venus and Mars by Sandro Botticelli

I’ve been a fan of Botticelli’s work since discovering it while taking a first-year History of Art course in 1974. I’d forgotten that Venus and Mars–one of Botticelli’s most famous paintings–is in the National Gallery, and gasped out loud when I entered the roomful of Botticellis. Fortunately, no one noticed.

There’s so much to love about this painting! The look on Venus’s face as she coolly regards the blissed- out Mars is priceless. She’s clearly not all that impressed! And then there are the four mischievious nymphs trying to wake up Mars. One of them is even wearing his helmet.

Sandro Botticelli Venus and Mars about 1485 Tempera and oil on poplar, 69.2 x 173 at the National Gallery in London
Sandro Botticelli Venus and Mars about 1485 Tempera and oil on poplar, 69.2 x 173.4 cm Bought, 1874 NG915 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG915

Flemish Masterpieces at the National Gallery

The National Gallery is particularly well endowed with masterpieces from the northern Renaissance. You’ll find several pieces by Rembrandt, two gems by Vermeer, and a famous van Dyck, among many others.

The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan van Eyck

This is one of the most famous paintings in the National Gallery, and is considered one of the most famous and intriguing paintings in the world. There are so many details to examine, and all have significance. For more information about the painting (which was completed in 1434) and why it’s considered so great, check out this analysis on YouTube.

Jan van Eyck The Arnolfini Portrait 1434 Oil on oak, 82.2 x 60 cm at the National Gallery in London
Jan van Eyck The Arnolfini Portrait 1434 Oil on oak, 82.2 x 60 cm Bought, 1842 NG186 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG186

A Woman Bathing in a Stream by Rembrandt

This is such a tender, beautiful painting by Rembrandt, and a bit of a change from his many portraits and self-portraits. The woman may be Hendrickje Stoffels, who came into Rembrandt’s household to look after his infant son after his first wife, Saskia, died. Hendrickje and Rembrandt became lovers but were unable to marry. There is a universality about the intimate moment caught in the painting that resonates with anyone who has ever taken off their shoes on a hot day to wade in a cool stream.

Rembrandt A Woman bathing in a Stream (Hendrickje Stoffels?) at the National Gallery in London
Rembrandt A Woman bathing in a Stream (Hendrickje Stoffels?) 1654 Oil on oak, 61.8 x 47 cm Holwell Carr Bequest, 1831 NG54 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG54

A Young Woman Seated at a Virginal by Johannes Vermeer

The word exquisite always come to mind when I look at a painting by Vermeer. Detailed and delicate, this painting shows us a moment in time. The young girl is just about to play, but someone or something has distracted her. Whatever it is, she doesn’t look too thrilled.

One of the ways to appreciate just why Vermeer is considered so great is to look at paintings by his contemporaries. Most depict similar subjects, but you can tell right away that there’s something different about the Vermeers. The brushwork is finer, the light more skillfully depicted, the backgrounds more perfectly rendered. Vermeer didn’t paint many pieces during his lifetime, but what he did paint was pretty amazing.

hannes Vermeer A Young Woman seated at a Virginal about 1670-2 Oil on canvas, 51.5 x 45.5 cm at the National Gallery in London
Johannes Vermeer A Young Woman seated at a Virginal about 1670-2 Oil on canvas, 51.5 x 45.5 cm Salting Bequest, 1910 NG2568 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG2568

A Boy and A Girl with a Cat and an Eel by Judith Leyster

I was super excited to come across this painting by Judith Leyster, who has been getting more recognition in recent years. The boy and the girl are definitely up to no good!

Judith Leyster A Boy and a Girl with a Cat and an Eel about 1635 Oil on oak, 59.4 × 48.8 cm at the National Gallery in London
Judith Leyster A Boy and a Girl with a Cat and an Eel about 1635 Oil on oak, 59.4 × 48.8 cm Bequeathed by C.F. Leach, 1943 NG5417 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG5417

The Four Elements: Air, Earth, Fire, Water by Joachim Beuckelaer

I had never seen these paintings before. They are not particularly famous, but they are interesting. I couldn’t stop looking at them.

Each painting depicts food according to its relationship to one of the four elements. In the Air painting, birds are being plucked and sold. Some impressive-looking vegetables are on display in the Earth painting. The Fire painting depicts game being butchered and roasted, and finally many different varieties of fish are ready for market in the Water painting.

The expressions on the faces of the people in the paintings are blank and dour. No one looks like they are enjoying themselves! But the colors and textures of the foods are so incredibly real. They almost look like they are about to spill out of the paintings onto the floor of the gallery.

Joachim Beuckelaer The Four Elements: Air 1570 Oil on canvas, 158 × 216 cm at the National Gallery in London
Joachim Beuckelaer The Four Elements: Air 1570 Oil on canvas, 158 × 216 cm Bought, 2001 NG6587 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG6587
Joachim Beuckelaer The Four Elements: Earth 1569 Oil on canvas, 158 × 215.4 cm at the National Gallery in London
Joachim Beuckelaer The Four Elements: Earth 1569 Oil on canvas, 158 × 215.4 cm Bought, 2001 NG6585 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG6585
Joachim Beuckelaer The Four Elements: Fire 1570 Oil on canvas at the National Gallery in London
Joachim Beuckelaer The Four Elements: Fire 1570 Oil on canvas, 158.2 × 215.4 cm Bought, 2001 NG6588 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG6588
Joachim Beuckelaer The Four Elements: Water 1569 Oil on canvas, 158.1 × 214.9 cm at the National Gallery in London
Joachim Beuckelaer The Four Elements: Water 1569 Oil on canvas, 158.1 × 214.9 cm Bought, 2001 NG6586 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG6586

Baroque Paintings at the National Gallery

Boy Bitten by a Lizard by Caravaggio

In a room full of great paintings, I was instantly drawn to this small painting by Caravaggio of a boy being bitten by a lizard. The expression on his face is so real and so relatable. The painting was completed in Rome in the mid-1590s and was considered innovative for the time. Apparently, it was unusual for a late-16th-century painting to show such a moment of action. Caravaggio, however, wasn’t worried about following artistic conventions. He painted directly on the canvas from live models

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio Boy bitten by a Lizard about 1594-5 Oil on canvas, 66 x 49.5 cm at the National Gallery in London
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio Boy bitten by a Lizard about 1594-5 Oil on canvas, 66 x 49.5 cm Bought with the aid of a contribution from the J. Paul Getty Jr Endowment Fund, 1986 NG6504 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG6504

British Painting at the National Gallery

The Fighting Temeraire by William Turner

My father bought a print of this painting when he first visited London in the 1960s. It was probably the first real painting I’d ever seen, and I remember loving to look at it when I was a child. When I saw it again in the National Gallery, I couldn’t help feeling emotional since my father has been gone for several years now and my mother passed quite recently.

Turner’s painting shows the final journey of the Temeraire, a warship that had played a distinguished role in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, but by 1838 was ready for the scrap heap. It’s a poignant scene in its depiction of the age of sail giving way to the age of steam. Turner, of course, was most famous for his depiction of light, which is on full display in the magnificent sunset depicted in the painting.

The painting is one of Turner’s most famous and duly celebrated, but for me it will always remind me of my childhood home.

Joseph Mallord William Turner The Fighting Temeraire 1839 Oil on canvas, 90.7 x 121.6 cm at the National Gallery in London
Joseph Mallord William Turner The Fighting Temeraire 1839 Oil on canvas, 90.7 x 121.6 cm Turner Bequest, 1856 NG524 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG524

Impressionists and Post-Impressionists at the National Gallery

The rooms displaying paintings by the Impressionists and post-Impressionists are generally mobbed at the National Gallery. So many famous pieces are included! Stand in the middle of one of the rooms and rotate slowly. If you’re a fan of this era and style of art, you’ll likely recognize just about every piece in the room, from the iconic Sunflowers by van Gogh to the massive painting of The Bathers by Seurat and the sublime waterlilies by Monet.

I’d forgotten just how rich the National Gallery’s collection of Impressionists is and spent my first few minutes in the rooms exclaiming (to myself), they have that? and that one? oh, my, and that one too? This is incredible!

I had to sit down a few times just to collect myself. I’ve picked out four of my favorites (but it was a tough choice).

Waterlilies by Monet

This luscious painting dominates one entire wall and is hard to get a full-on look at thanks to the throngs of like-minded visitors standing in front of it. This piece is one that was not included in the collection of large waterlily paintings in Musėe de l’Orangerie in Paris (check out my round-up of Nine of the Best Small Museums in Paris for more about the Monets in the Orangerie).

The waterlily paintings in the Orangerie include details of trees and foliage that anchor the viewer and give them a sense of location. But this painting in the National Gallery is completely free-flowing. You have no idea where in the pond you are; you’re immersed in a shimmering world of greens and pinks and purples. No photograph can do it justice; you need to stand in front of the real thing and just drink it in.

Claude Monet Water-Lilies after 1916 Oil on canvas, 200.7 x 426.7 cm at the National Gallery in London
Claude Monet Water-Lilies after 1916 Oil on canvas, 200.7 x 426.7 cm Bought, 1963 NG6343 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG6343

Sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh

This cheerful painting of sunflowers exuberantly clumped together in a plain vase signed by “Vincent” is probably the most famous of van Gogh’s works. It appears on a dizzying array of merchandise in the gift shop, from mugs to cards to t-shirts to umbrellas.

Why is this painting so famous? I think because it looks like sunshine on canvas. The varying shades of yellow and gold that van Gogh uses perfectly capture the feeling of a hot day in late summer when some sunflowers are still in bloom, others have just passed their peak and are starting to wilt, and still others have lost their petals completely.

This version of Sunflowers is one of five, the other four being on display in art museums around the world including the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam (always worth a visit!). Apparently, van Gogh made the paintings to decorate his house in Arles in preparation for a visit from fellow artist Paul Gauguin.

Vincent van Gogh Sunflowers 1888 Oil on canvas, 92.1 x 73 cm at the National gallery in London
Vincent van Gogh Sunflowers 1888 Oil on canvas, 92.1 x 73 cm Bought, Courtauld Fund, 1924 NG3863 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG3863

Bathers at Asnières by Georges Seurat

The painting depicts regular people enjoying a day off at the river, the factories they work in visible in the distance, their focus on the feel of warm grass and cool water. It’s a snapshot in time. Each person is immersed in his own thoughts; each is alone, the exhaustion of a week at work still heavy on their shoulders even on their day off.

This massive painting is famous for its use of pointillism and was Seurat’s first major composition. He painted it at the age of 24 to make his mark at the official Salon in the spring of 1884. Unfortunately, the painting was rejected!

Georges Seurat Bathers at Asnières 1884 Oil on canvas, 201 × 300 cm at the National Gallery in London
Georges Seurat Bathers at Asnières 1884 Oil on canvas, 201 × 300 cm Bought, Courtauld Fund, 1924 NG3908 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG3908

Surprised! by Rousseau

This painting by Rousseau was new to me, and I just loved it! Look at the expression on the tiger’s face! Has he been frightened by the flashes of lightning and the sudden wind blowing the jungle foliage all over the place? Who knows? But it’s such a wonderfully lush moment. Surprised! was the first of about 20 jungle paintings that Rousseau produced. His jungles are entirely imaginary; Rousseau never left France.

He was an amateur artist who faced a fair bit of ridicule from the art establishment, but now Rousseau is considered a pioneer of “naïve art.”

Henri Rousseau Surprised! 1891 Oil on canvas, 129.8 x 161.9 cm at the National Gallery in London
Henri Rousseau Surprised! 1891 Oil on canvas, 129.8 x 161.9 cm Bought, with the aid of a substantial donation from the Hon. Walter H. Annenberg, 1972 NG6421 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG6421

National Gallery Details

The National Gallery is open daily from 10 am to 6 pm and on Fridays until 9 pm. It’s located on Trafalgar Square and entry is free, although donations are welcomed. The nearest Tube stations are Charing Cross and Leicester Square.

Tours of the National Gallery

Every so often, I spring for a guided tour of an art museum and I’m never disappointed. Here are some options for touring the National Gallery.

Conclusion

Have you visited the National Gallery? What are some of your favorites? Share in the Comments below. Want more posts about art museums? Here are some posts about great art museums in Europe that I’ve visited and recommend:

Birmingham city center canals

Birmingham: A Pleasant Surprise for the Artsy Traveler

Artsy Sightseeing, Destinations, England, Get Inspired carolcram Leave a Comment on Birmingham: A Pleasant Surprise for the Artsy Traveler

Last updated on March 11th, 2023 at 07:43 pm

Back in the day, industrial Birmingham did not have the best of reputations. I lived in England for four years in the 1970s and have been back many times, but never have I put Birmingham on my itinerary. I remember changing trains there in 1979 and walking quickly and a tad nervously between stations.

But over the last few decades, Birmingham has undergone a transformation.

Why I Went to Birmingham

While planning my solo trip to England in 2022, I put Birmingham on my list for one reason only. I wanted to visit a National Trust property called Birmingham Back to Backs. It’s not a grand country house like the vast majority of National Trust properties, but rather a nondescript collection of cramped houses built around a courtyard in the style known as back-to-back.

For over two centuries, millions of Britons (including some of my ancestors) lived and worked in this type of housing. I was writing a novel set in a mill town in Yorkshire in the 1890s and wanted to know how regular people lived. Since the Birmingham Back to Backs property is the only one of its kind left in England, I booked two nights in Birmingham to see it.

But I had zero expectations of what else I’d see and do while in Birmingham.

Birmingham Map

The map below includes all the locations mentioned in this post. I suggest staying in the Gas Street Basin area (see below). You can walk pretty much everywhere from there or grab an Uber.

Map thanks to Wanderlog, a trip planner app on iOS and Android

Arrival in Birmingham

I arrived at Birmingham New Street Train Station (#5 on the map above) at 7 pm after a wonderful day tootling around the Cotswolds on a Go Cotswolds tour (read my post all about it!) and took a taxi to the AC Marriott hotel located on the edge of the Gas Street Basin (#3 on the map above) in Birmingham’s bustling and refurbished city center.

The AC Marriott is located in Gas Street Basin in the building called The Mailbox

The second largest city in England, Birmingham appears to be booming. After checking in to the hotel, I emerged quayside to the Gas Street Basin to survey a plethora of modern architecture, colorful boats cruising along canals lined with posh restaurants and bustling pubs, and throngs of people out having a good time.

Birmingham apparently has more miles of canals than Venice. Who knew?

The city planners got things right with this area of Birmingham. It’s incredibly people-friendly with its canal-side walkways and aura of peaceful prosperity.

Revitalized Birmingham

A Full Day in Birmingham

While enjoying my first coffee of the day at a coffee shop on the main floor of the hotel, I tried to listen in on the conversation between two men sitting next to me. They were speaking English—I think. The famous Brummie accent really is just about incomprehensible, at least to me.

I needed to listen very, very carefully to hear more than a series of rumbles and mumbles with swallowed consonants and vowels and glottal stops. Clipped words emerged from throats that sounded like they’d been stuffed with cotton. I worried the men were choking, but no, they were just having a regular conversation. I’ve eavesdropped on French conversations and understood more!

So far, I’ve had to ask anyone I’ve interacted with to repeat themselves several times. Even a phrase like Anything else? asked by the coffee person comes out as noise.

And I thought the Scots accent was hard to understand! The Birmingham accent has it beat, hands down.

Birmingham Back to Backs

As mentioned, I decided to spend a full day in Birmingham to tour the Birmingham Back to Backs (#1 on the map above), a National Trust property that promises to let visitors experience 200 years of working people’s lives in the heart of Birmingham.

A hundred years ago, the Midlands and North of England were full of these brick structures built to accommodate the millions of factory workers needed to keep the industrial revolution ticking over.

I purchased my ticket a month prior (pre-booking is essential) and arrived at 10:30 am for the first tour of the day.

Entrance to Birmingham Back-to-Backs National Trust Property
Entrance to Birmingham Back to Backs National Trust Property

For almost two hours, I enjoyed one of the most comprehensive and interesting tours I’ve ever experienced.

The National Trust is known for its stewardship of massive stately homes—domains of the 1%. I’ve visited many of these homes over the years and marveled at the art and architecture.

The Birmingham Back to Backs are at the opposite end of the wealth spectrum. That the National Trust also recognized the need to preserve the type of building in which a great majority of the population lived right up until the early 2000s is to its credit.

What are Back to Backs?

The Back to Backs are houses built, as the name suggests, back-to-back, with half the houses facing the street and the other half facing an inner courtyard. A collection of these houses is known as a court. Some courts included dozens of houses. The National Trust has preserved Court 15, a community of eleven houses thought to have housed over 500 different families over its 200-year lifespan.

The courtyard at the Birmingham Back-to-Backs
The courtyard at the Birmingham Back to Backs

A very knowledgeable guide took our group into four homes and related the stories of the occupants from four time periods between 1840 and 1977. In our group of 9, everyone except me hailed from England.

One of the men, who was about my age, told us that his mum had been born in a Back to Back. I’m pretty sure my grandmother and certainly my great-grandmother would have lived in similar housing up in Yorkshire.

House 1: 1851

Each of the four houses we visit was decorated in the style of a different time period. The first was from 1851 and was occupied by the Levy family, a Jewish family who migrated to Birmingham from London. The house was surprisingly comfortable, even spacious, although certainly not luxurious. Lawrence Levy had been a watchmaker and had his workshop on the top floor.

We climbed up and down tiny twisting stairways numerous times during the tour. Handrails and grips were provided for safety, but the guide informed us that back in the day, none of the staircases would have had handrails. She asked us to imagine how agile a woman would have needed to be to mount the stairs while wearing long skirts and carrying a candle in one hand and probably a baby in the other. Apparently, accidents were common, and no wonder.

Even hanging on with both hands, I could barely make it up some of the almost vertical stairways!

House 2: 1860s

The next house we entered belonged to the Oldfield family who lived in one of the back houses in the 1860s. Eleven people lived in the house at that time—two parents, seven children, and two lodgers all crammed into three floors consisting of one room per floor that also included space for Herbert Oldfield’s workshop. He was a glassworker who made glass eyes for dolls and stuffed toys.

One of the double beds had four pillows—two at each end. Four children would have slept top to tail in the bed, with likely one more in the middle! The guide also showed us a bureau drawer in which the baby would sleep.

A curtain divided the children’s bed from another double bed slept in by two lodgers. A man and a woman (unmarried) shared the bed but apparently not at the same time. One worked the day shift and the other the night shift so they were two ships passing in the night. Their space was bare of everything except a bed and a high shelf on which was stacked a small collection of books. The entire room was maybe 12’ x 12’.

The overcrowding must have been horrendous—and yet very common. My great-grandmother with her twelve brothers and sisters would have lived in a similar place when she was young. She eloped in 1903 and emigrated to Canada in 1911 when my grandmother was five years old. The log cabin she inhabited in British Columbia with her four children and no running water must have seemed like paradise compared to the housing of her youth.

Entrance to the communal wash house at the Birmingham Back-to-Backs
Entrance to the communal wash house at the Birmingham Back to Backs

House 3: 1830s-1935

Three generations of the third family—the Mitchells—lived at Court 15 from the 1830s, when water had to be brought from the well a few blocks away, until 1935 when the houses had basic plumbing and electricity.

The prevailing feeling in the small rooms was how cramped, dark, and uncomfortable they must have been to live in. The upper floors had no heat, and damp was a constant problem.

House 4: 1960s-2002

The final house was lived in by George Saunders who migrated to Birmingham in 1958 from St. Kitts in the Caribbean. By that time, the ground floor of Court 15 had been converted to shops with some people still living in the floors above. George was a tailor and the last person who worked in Court 15 before its closure in 2002.

Special Exhibition at Birmingham Back to Backs

After enjoying the tour (highly recommended), I toured the special exhibitions. The most interesting documented the Child’s Emigration Homes founded by John T. Milldemore in 1873. The Homes sent 5000 orphans and desperately poor children from Birmingham to Ontario, Nova Scotia, and British Columbia in Canada. Between 1922 and 1955, they sent another 259 children to Australia.

While some children thrived in their new homes, others did not and suffered terrible abuse. The pictures and commentary are both heartbreaking and compelling.

Photograph of Mary S., living in poverty in Birmingham in 1896 and allegedly better off in Canada in 1897
George Before and After

Birmingham Back to Backs Practical Information

Operated by the National Trust, the Birmingham Back to Backs are accessible only by a guided tour that you must book in advance. Here’s the link. Tours are offered from 10:00 to 15:00 daily (closed Monday). Admission is free to National Trust members. Non-member prices are £9.50 for adults and £4.75 for children.

The Barber Institute of Fine Arts

After a lunch of leftover chicken wings from my dinner the night before, I set off for the Barber Institute of Fine Arts (#2). I had wanted to visit the Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery (#6) which is said to be world-class and have an excellent collection of paintings by the pre-Raphaelites. However, it was undergoing renovations, with almost all the galleries closed.

Housed in an imposing building on the campus of the University of Birmingham, the Barber Institute of Fine Arts was also reputed to have a fine collection so off I went. I took my first Birmingham Uber with a young man originally from Haiti who was very interested in learning all about Canada. We had a great chat as he drove me through the posh area of Birmingham with large houses and leafy avenues on our way to the university.

The Barber Institute Collection

The collection at the Barber Institute of Fine Arts was small but quite exquisite. I spent a happy hour wandering past works from the 14th to the 19th centuries. Here are a few highlights.

Dürer Special Exhibition

One room was dedicated to a special exhibition of etchings by Albrecht Dürer. I’ve had a soft spot for Dürer even since touring his house in Nuremberg on a trip to Germany in 2015.

Etching of a greyhound by Albrecht Dürer
Etching of a greyhound by Albrecht Dürer

Medieval Art

One of the first rooms included a good collection of medieval art (always my favorite). Here’s a piece by Simone Martini (1284-1344) of Saint John the Evangelist. Painted in Siena in 1320, the piece originally formed the right-hand panel of a triptych. Although there is no signature on the piece to prove it was painted by Martini, the refined use of color, the elegant borders to the drapery, and the decoration in the gilding are characteristic of Martini’s style, which was very innovative for the time.

Flemish Art

I am fascinated by the still life paintings common in Flanders during the 16th and 17th centuries. The Barber had several interesting examples, including the two shown below.

A Still Life with a Nautilus Cup by Jan Davidsz de Heem

I love how the objects have been arranged in this painting to demonstrate how well the artist is able to show the play of light on different materials–shell, pewter, leaves, fruit, etc., using only a few colors. Jan Davidsz de Heem (1606-1683/4) lived in Leiden, Holland.

A Still Life with a Nautilus Cup by Jan Davidsz de Heem
A Still Life with a Nautilus Cup by Jan Davidsz de Heem
Still Life with a Garland of Fruit by Maria Tassaert

A woman artist! You don’t see many of them, although I noticed on my trip in 2022 that changes are afoot. In most galleries, I found a least a few paintings by female old masters as more and more of them are being rediscovered and given their due.

Maria Tassaert (about 1642-1668) lived and worked in Antwerp in Flanders. The painting is a celebration of Nature’s bounty and the artist’s technical skills in depicting a cluster of fruit that includes cherries, white peaches, white and black grapes, nectarines, raspberries, blackberries, and gooseberries in addition to ivy and fruit-tree leaves.

Still Life with a Garland of Fruit by Maria Tassaert - a still life from the 17th century Flanders
Still Life with a Garland of Fruit by Maria Tassaert

Impressionists

The Barber Institute includes a few beautiful paintings from the 19th century, including a very fine Renoir.

A Young Woman Seated by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

This work became know as La Pensée or Thought and was painted around 1876. The soft oranges, reds, greens, and blues are typical of the Impressionist pallette during that period.

Painting called A Young Woman Seated by Pierre-Auguste Renoir
A Young Woman Seated by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Pre-Raphaelites

The Last of England by Ford Madox Brown

One of the Barber Institutes major works is The Last of England by pre-Raphaelite artist Ford Madox Brown. It’s one of the masterworks of Victorian painting and one of the very few pieces in the collection that I was not allowed to photograph. Thank goodness for Wikipedia Commons (see picture below).

The painting depicts a young family huddled together on an open boat on their way to a ship that will take them from England to a new life in the colonies. The resigned expressions on their faces as they leave behind their home is caught with painstaking detail.

Ford Madox Brown, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Barber Institute of Fine Arts Practical Information

The Barber Institute of Fine Arts is located on the campus of the University of Birmingham and is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 17:00. Admission is free.

Strolling Around the Canals

I took an Uber back to my hotel and went for a stroll along the canals in the area immediately adjacent to Gas Street Basin (#3) where I was staying. Restaurants and upscale pubs line the canals which were teeming with people enjoying the Bank Holiday Sunday.

The prevailing atmosphere was prosperous, cheerful, and incredibly diverse. Everyone seemed to be under forty, many pushing strollers. People from all over the world have made Birmingham their home, which rivals London for the diversity of its population.

Birmingham Canals
Brummies at play in a Birmingham plaza

What Else to See and Do in Birmingham

With only a day to spare, I didn’t have time to enjoy all the delights of Birmingham. Here are some suggestions if you have some extra hours. I particularly recommend the walking tours.

Where to Stay in Birmingham

I recommend staying in the vicinity of the Gas Street Basin, preferably overlooking one of the canals. I stayed in the AC Hotel by Marriott and can recommend it. The room was spacious, the staff friendly and helpful, and the large bar very comfortable. Also, the location overlooking the Gas Street Basin can’t be beat. Right outside your door are plenty of restaurants and cafes.

Here are some other options:



Booking.com

Conclusion

Have you visited Birmingham? Any suggestions for what to see and do? Share in the comments below.

Here are more posts about cool places to visit in England;

A Visit with Tuscan Artist Silvia Salvadori in Arezzo, Tuscany

Artsy Sightseeing, Destinations, Italy carolcram 1 Comment on A Visit with Tuscan Artist Silvia Salvadori in Arezzo, Tuscany

Last updated on March 23rd, 2023 at 03:04 am

Artsy traveling means being on the lookout for interesting encounters with artists, artisans, musicians, writers—the whole pantheon of creative people. In Arezzo, a delightful town in Tuscany known as the city of gold and high fashion, I met with visual artist Silvia Salvadori.

Silvia works out of her studio, the Bottega d’Arte Toscana, on a tiny side street steps from the Piazza Grande in Arezzo (see the map below). If you are in Arezzo, stop by to meet her and see her marvelous work.

Places mapped by Wanderlog, a trip planner on iOS and Android

Silvia is one of the very few artists in Italy who creates art using the same painting techniques as those used by the great masters of medieval Tuscany. I’m talking about such luminaries as Giotto, Duccio, and Lorenzetti—all artists I love and who inspired my debut novel The Towers of Tuscany.

Who is Silvia Salvadori?

Silvia’s ambition as an artist is to preserve and promote the ancient painting techniques described by Cennino Cennini in his work Il Libro dell’Arte (1370-1440) and by Giorgio Vasari in the Lives of the most excellent painters, sculptors, and architects (1550-1568). 

Using these techniques, Silvia draws her inspiration from the art created by artists in Florence and Siena during medieval, Gothic, and early Renaissance times.

Silvia’s workshop–the Bottega d’Arte Toscana–is a treasure trove of beautiful paintings. One of the more prominent pieces is A Window in Time that hangs on the back wall of the Bottega and immediately captured my attention. This arresting painting is a tribute to the city of Arezzo and the work of Piero della Francesca. The painting is a good example of how Silvia uses medieval painting techniques to put her own spin on a medieval subject.

A Window On Time - medieval-style painting of a woman playing chess by Silvia Salvadori

Interview with Silvia Salvadori

I interviewed Silvia in the Bottega d’Arte Toscana in Arezzo in October 2022. Here’s an excerpt from our lively conversation conducted with the aid of a translation app.

Silvia’s Inspiration

Artsy Traveler: Why have you chosen to create works inspired by medieval art and using medieval techniques?

Silvia Salvadori: Twenty years ago, I began to study these painting techniques while at school in Siena. From there, a real adventure began. I decided I wanted to rediscover and use the painting techniques described by Cennini, a painter who lived in the 14th century and was a pupil of Giotto.

Selection of pigments and brushes and other painting tools in the workshop of Silvia Salvadori
Art materials being used in Silvia’s workshop

Silvia’s Goal as an Artist

Artsy Traveler: What is your goal?

Silvia Salvadori: My goal is to preserve these techniques from medieval art and pass them on to future generations. These techniques are typically Tuscan. They were born in Siena  and then also applied later by artists living in Florence and Arezzo where other schools of painting were born.

There have been other artists who have taken up these techniques but only to make reproductions or copies. I started by making copies, but now I am creating a style that is Renaissance but that also looks to the future.

It is a cultural project. These medieval art techniques are important and should not be lost.

How Silvia Creates a Painting

Artsy Traveler: How do you create a painting?

Silvia Salvadori: As described in Cennini’s book Il Libro dell’Arte, I start with wooden boards from poplar, lime, willow or pear trees that have been aged at least thirty years. I then prepare them using layers and layers (eight to twelve coats) of rabbit skin glue mixed with chalk. The chalk I use is the same kind that Cennini used in the 14th century. I also use the same pigments that Cennini describes.

The second phase is gilding performed with thin leaves of pure 23 carat gold stretched on a thin layer of red clay. I also use precious gems. These gems all had special meaning in medieval times. For example, amber, which I use a lot, symbolizes eternity.

For a detailed description of all the steps involved in creating a painting, check this page on Silvia’s website.

Silvia demonstrates how she uses a small punch to make designs in the gold leaf.

Landscapes in Silvia’s Work

Artsy Traveler: I see that you also often include landscapes in your paintings.

Silvia Salvadori: Yes, since I live in Arezzo and every day see the Tuscany landscape, I like to include it in my paintings.

An example of one of Silvia Salvadori’s landscape paintings

Looking to the Future

Artsy Traveler: Will you one day teach your techniques?

Silvia: I would very much like to teach young people how to paint using these techniques so that the techniques are not lost. But as Cennino said, technique is not enough. To create art, you must have a kind soul.

Silvia’s Artwork

As soon as you see one of Silvia’s pieces, you know you are looking at work inspired by medieval and Renaissance art. And while most of her subjects are directly related to their medieval and Renaissance counterparts, some subjects are contemporary and from pop culture.

Silvia’s work glows with the rich colors she creates from pigments she mixes with egg tempera, just like Cennini describes in his handbook. Her skill is awe-inspiring. Following are examples of the many gorgeous paintings hanging in Bottega d’Arte.

Paintings of Madonna and Child

Go to any art gallery in Italy that features medieval art and you’ll see scores of depictions of the Madonna and Child. Silvia’s versions, while heavily inspired by medieval works, are fresh and vibrant. The colors glow in the soft light of her workshop.

Here are four of the Madonna and Child paintings displayed in the Bottega d’Arte.

A depiction of the Madonna and Child by Silvia Salvadori done in the medieval style
A small, circular gold painting of the Madonna and Child by Silvia Salvadori done in the medieval style
A gold painting of the Madonna and Child by Silvia Salvadori done in the medieval style
A medieval-inspired painting of the Madonna and Child by Silvia Salvadori done in the medieval style

Paintings of Medieval Scenes

I love how medieval artists depicted buildings and towns. Silvia does the same when she includes buildings in her paintings. I particularly loved these two pieces.

Medieval-style painting of Christ and the devil by Silvia Salvadori
Medieval style painting by Silvia Salvadori of Saint George and the dragon

Paintings with Contemporary Subjects

Silvia doesn’t confine herself to creating works in the medieval style. Many of the paintings in her workshop depict contemporary subjects—from Marilyn Monroe to a dachshund (one of my favorites).

Painting on a gold background of a dachshund

My Connection to Silvia’s Work

I was thrilled to discover Silvia and her beautiful artwork for two reasons. First, as you’ve already seen from the examples included in this post, her work is stunning. And second, her work has a direct connection with my first novel The Towers of Tuscany about a female painter in 14th-century Tuscany.

When I was researching early Renaissance painting techniques in order to write the novel, I read and re-read Il Libro dell’Arte by Cennino de Cennini many times. Imagine my delight to discover that Silvia is intimately familiar with Cennini’s book, credited as the first manual designed to teach painting techniques to artists.

I felt honored to spend time with someone totally dedicated to her art. Silvia clearly loves what she does. As I watched her paint with tiny brushes that she uses to meticulously layer on stroke after stroke, I felt like the centuries had melted away and I was watching Sofia Barducci, my fictional heroine in The Towers of Tuscany, at work.

I have every confidence that Silvia will be able to realize her ambition to one day share her knowledge with other artists so that the ancient techniques are kept alive.

Visit Silvia Salvadori

Visit Silvia in the Bottega d’Arte Toscana in Arezzo and tell her the Artsy Traveler sent you! And after you’ve enjoyed meeting Silvia, consider purchasing one of her pieces. She has a wide variety of sizes and subjects to choose from. And considering the hours and hours of work Silvia dedicates to each of her pieces, the prices are very reasonable.

A selection of small paintings for sale in the Bottega d'Arte Toscana in Arezzo
Gregg Simpson with Silvia Salvadori in her studio

I love the small piece I purchased of a stylized Tuscan town painted in Silvia’s unique style. I have hung it next to my writing desk so I can look at it every day and remember the wonderful hour I spent getting to know Silvia and admiring her work.

Small and colorful gold painting by Silvia Salvadori of a Tuscan town
The small painting I purchased from Silvia Salvadori

Visit Arezzo

After meeting Silvia in the Bottega d’Arte, take time to wander around Arezzo. It’s a charming town with plenty to delight the Artsy Traveler. With its inclined trapezoidal shape, the Piazza Grande is one of the most beautiful in Tuscany (which is saying something!).

Here are some pictures of the Piazza Grande.

Piazza Grande in Arezzo in Tuscany
Medieval houses lining the Piazza Grande in Arezzo in Tuscany

And like so many towns in Tuscany, a big attraction is the food. We passed numerous stores and cafes featuring local cuisine. The specialty in Arezzo is Pappardelle all’Aretina (a ribbon-shaped pasta served with a sauce made from rabbit or duck), Zuppa di Cavolo (a cabbage soup), and the Pappa al Pomodoro (a tomato soup).

While in Arezzo, you can also visit the Vasari House Museum, which is a rare example of an artist’s house from the late Renaissance.

Conclusion

Have you visited Arezzo? Share your experience and suggestions with other Artsy Travelers in the Comments below.

Here are some more posts about artists in Europe:

Egyptian sarcophagus at MONA in Hobart, Tasmania

MONA: The Museum of Old and New Art in Hobart, Tasmania–A World-Class Art Experience by Guest Poster Linda Moore

Artsy Sightseeing, Australasia, Destinations, Get Inspired carolcram Leave a Comment on MONA: The Museum of Old and New Art in Hobart, Tasmania–A World-Class Art Experience by Guest Poster Linda Moore

Last updated on March 11th, 2023 at 01:02 am

Guest poster and novelist Linda Moore takes artsy travelers on a journey down under to remote Tasmania to experience the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA). Find out more about Linda Moore and her debut novel, Attribution. Author Joshua Mohr (Model Citizen) calls Attribution a “high-concept arthouse puzzle.” Sounds intriguing!

Written by Linda Moore for Artsy Traveler

Arriving at MONA

If possible, arrange to arrive at the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) by water. The 25-minute ferry ride from Hobart in Tasmania brings into dramatic focus a clifftop complex that rivals any of the major museums of the world.

To reach the museum entrance from the ferry dock, you’ll need to climb one hundred steps. If you wish to avoid the climb, you can travel to the museum by car from Hobart, a 20-minute drive away.

Of course, no matter how you arrive at MONA, you’ll have traveled many hours to remote Tasmania, an island off the coast of Australia.

Is the long journey worth it? Absolutely! Despite its isolation, MONA has become a world-renowned art destination—and a must-visit for the artsy traveler.

Photo by Barrylb, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

What is MONA?

The creation of gambler-turned-art collector David Walsh, MONA will appeal to art lovers interested in experiencing a stunning collection of old and new art and impressive architecture.

Walsh, a controversial figure with a large bank account, built his museum for his own amusement and to provide a landing place for art that interests him. Almost everything about MONA is different from other museums. Check out the MONA website and read the content. Even ordinary information such as how to get to the museum is presented with a quirky twist.

MONA’s Collection

The essence of MONA is not its eccentricities, but its collection, and Walsh does not disappoint. MONA displays pieces from a full range of the history of art. The eclectic installation includes art from ancient Egypt, the European Renaissance, and Pacific Islanders.

You’ll find an Egyptian sarcophagus and Asian scrolls along with 20th-century works such as Georgia O’Keefe’s flowers and provocative works such as Matthew Barney’s genitalia.

Why I Loved MONA

MONA draws me and others who travel the world to see art because we want to discover artists we don’t know about, the ones whose original ideas are not derivative of the major art scenes in New York or Berlin. Similar to traveling to the Venice Biennale or Documenta, a journey to remote MONA exposes you to new art and new ideas.

For example, Azerbaijani artist Faig Ahmed’s woven fiber pieces use an ancient art form in a contemporary way. His work appeared in the Venice Biennale and later was added to a show at MoMA in New York. But how many of us know about art in Azerbaijan?

Azerbaijani woven fibre piece

Walsh’s collection spans the globe and his curators are on the hunt for fresh ideas from artists whose works may never be seen by curators from big international institutions.

MONA’s Installations

The site-specific installations at MONA are the showstoppers. Examples include Yayoi Kusama’s room with dizzy dots and the two-story waterfall by German artist Julius Popp that spills text generated by 128 computer-controlled nozzles streaming words from real Google searches.

Yayoi Kusama Installation
Yayoi Kusama Installation

Generous budgets and plenty of space provide artists with creative opportunities that may not be possible in large city museums.  For example, an $18 million tunnel completed in 2019 houses works by Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, who spent time in prison for his art, and The Divine Comedy, a light installation of hell, purgatory, and paradise by one of my favorites, Chilean-born artist Alfredo Jaar. Here’s a link to The Divine Comedy featured in an article in The Guardian.

When to Visit

Schedule at least a day-long visit so you can view the James Turrell light pieces like Pharos (named after the lighthouse in Alexandria) inside a tunnel and then remain until sunset to sit outside under Turrell’s Amarna project that glows and changes as the sunlight in the Southern hemisphere disappears. Stunning.

Armana changing with the setting sun, an installation piece at MONA by James Turrell
Amarna changing with the setting sun

Shore lights twinkle as you travel back to Hobart on the night ferry and the peaceful channel creates space to ponder the impressive art experiences you’ve enjoyed at MONA.

Practical Information

MONA is only open Friday to Sunday, so temporary exhibitions are displayed for five to six months. You must purchase your ticket in advance and ensure you have reservations for everything you want to see.

Read about Linda Moore on the Artsy Traveler Guest Posters page. Here are some other contributions from guest posters to help you with your travel planning:

Have you traveled to MONA? Share your suggestions and experience in the comments below.