My Top 5 Art galleries
Thinking about design inspiration during COVID, my mind wandered to the many art galleries and museums I’ve frequented around the world; from the MOMA and Guggenhiem in New York city, the Pompideou in Paris, to the obscure Museum of old and new art (Mona) in Hobart Australia — All of which have bought me endless amounts of joy and inspiration over the years.
It’s hard to say which ones are the most inpsiring, for me each gallery represents something unique. But, if I had to choose my top five all time favourites, I’d start with…
1. Mona — Museum of Old and New Art
Mostly unknown to the Northern Hemisphere, the MONA (located in Hobart Tasmania) is rarely on the top 10 list of galleries for most people, let alone number one. Buried in the side of hill next to a harbour, the Mona however, is one of the most unique, obscure, unasuming, and inspiring galleries I’ve visited. It houses the worlds largest private collection of art, owned by eccentric mathematician and self confessed aethist David Walsh, and as the name suggests is filled with artifacts ranging from 3000 year old Egyptian mummies, Modernist art installations by Olafur Eliasson, and home to a giant mechanical pooping machine called the Cloaca — I kid you not.
In addition to the Museum, the cultural movement that surrounds Mona draws people from around the world for an annual winter solstice festival called MOFO where artists, musicians, and the culinary elite come together to celebrate the longest night of the year — topping it off the next day with the traditional nude beach swim in the fidged Tasman sea.
2. Centre Pompidou Paris
Paris is one of those cities I find myself drawn back to time and time again — Mostly for the pastries, and partially for the Museums and Galleries ;)
The Centre Pompidou
3. Cooper Hewitt Design Museum
The museum mile is home to some of the worlds most renowned galleries and museums; The Met, Guggenheim, Neue, and one in particluar that always draws me back, the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonion Design Mesuem. I think the reason for CHDM scores so high on my list is that within the walls of the 5th Avenue mansion you’ll find a small, concentrated, and highly relevant collection of design artifacts that span fashion, digital, graphic, and product design — all of which have inspired me in various ways and shaped my career up to this point.
4. The National Gallery of London
Just a few blocks from where I worked in Covent Garden, the National Gallery of London was a continual (free) source of inspiration. Sitting in front of a William Turner on my lunch break, contemplating Rembrandt’s self portrait, admiring Van Gogh, Da Vinci, Bottecelli… and all the European masters I studied in high school; the collection is vast and offers something new with every visit.
5. The Guggenheim Museum, New York
In terms of iconic architecture, its hard to pass up a visit to the Guggenhein in NYC. The museum, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright continues to inspire me with every visit as artists and curators leverage the unique interior, designing immersive experiences that draw you in and around the sprialling rotunda.
Other museums and galleries worth noting…
The Met, New York
Moma, New York
The Whitney, New York
The Neue Galerie, New York
The Guggenhiem, Bilboa Spain
The Tate Modern, London
Louve, Paris
NGV, Melbourne
Yayoi Kasama Museum, Tokyo
Stay inspired!
