Thursday, May 23, 2013

Exploring Museums and Great Works of Art


I am passionate about museums and galleries. I can spend an entire day contemplating art.  I became interested in art when I was in college, but where I came from I could only see masterpieces by famous artists like Van Gogh, Monet, Cezanne and Picasso in pictures or read about them in books. When I moved to Los Angeles my husband brought me to The Getty Museum and that’s when my love for art grew stronger.

Here’s a picture of me at The Getty during our most recent visit.



Since cupid hit me at The Getty, I have visited world-class museums and galleries – and have seen the world’s greatest paintings and sculptures…Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, Vincent van Gogh’s Irises, Michelangelo’s Pieta, David, The Creation of Adam and The Last Judgment, Sandro Botticelli Birth of Venus…among others.

These are the museums that my husband and I have visited so far (listed in order visited)... 

J. Paul Getty Museum (Los Angeles, USA)
Getty contains a collection of Western art from the Middle Ages to the present.  Collection highlights include Van Gogh’s Irises, Renoir’s La Promenade, Monet’s Sunrise and Rembrandt’s Abduction of Europa. 

Victoria and Albert Museum (London, United Kingdom)
With over 4.5 million objects in its 145 galleries, Victoria and Albert Museum is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design. 

The Fusilier Museum (London, United Kingdom)
The museum houses a collection commemorating over three hundred years of the of the Lancashire Fusiliers regiment's history. 

Roman Baths (Bath, United Kingdom)
An extraordinary archaeological site and museum built around Britain's only hot spring. 

Musée du Louvre  (Paris, France)
The Louvre, one of the largest museums in the world and the most visited, is home to nearly 35,000 impressive objects from prehistory to the 21st  century.  The museum holds Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, ancient Greek statues Aphrodite of Milos/Venus de Milo and Winged Victory of Samothrace. 

Palace of Versailles (Versailles, France)
Palace of Versailles was turned into a museum of French history in 1833. It is the finest museum of classic French Art.  Highlights include Marie Antoinette's room and the Hall of Mirrors. 

St. Peter's Basilica (Vatican)
Arguably the world's most famous sculpture of a religious subject, Michelangelo’s Pieta is housed at St. Peter’s Basilica. 

The Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel (Vatican)
The Vatican Museums are most famous for the Raphael Rooms (entire rooms painted by Raphael) and Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam and The Last Judgment painted on the altar wall and ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. 

Palatine Hill and The Roman Forum (Rome, Italy)
A large open-air museum, the Palatine Hill is one of the most ancient parts of Rome.  People have lived there since approximately 1000 BC. It was for centuries the center of Roman public life, the site of triumphal processions, elections and public speeches. 

Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Los Angeles, USA)
LACMA is the largest art museum in the western United States. Collection highlights include Cezanne's Still Life with Cherries and Peaches, Monet’s Nympheas and Rembrandt’s The Raising of Lazarus. LACMA has also exhibited the fabled treasures of the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun. 

Österreichische Galerie Belvedere (Vienna, Austria)
Is an art museum housed in the Belvedere Palace.  The museum holds a collection of masterpieces from the Middle Ages and Baroque up to the 21st century Contemporary Art.  Well-known artists with pieces on display include Van Gogh, Klimt and Schiele. 

Schönbrunn Palace (Vienna, Austria)
 The 1,441-room summer residence of the Imperial Habsburg is one of the finest examples of Baroque and Rococo architecture. 

The Uffizi Gallery (Florence, Italy)
The Uffizi holds the world’s finest collection of Renaissance paintings. The best known works on display are Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus, Giotto’s Ognissanti's Madonna, Leonardo da Vinci’s The Annunciation and Raphael’s Madonna of the Goldfinch. 

Galleria dell'Accademia (Florence, Italy)
The Galleria dell'Accademia houses Michelangelo's David, one of the most famous sculptures in the world. 

Duomo of Siena (Siena, Italy) 
The Duomo holds precious frescos, sculptures, stained glass designs and marble masterpieces. 

The Ruins of Pompeii (Pompeii, Italy)
 A huge open-air museum where casts made from human remains show real people caught and buried in volcanic debris as they fled from erupting Mt. Vesuvius with their most prized possessions.  

Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (Barcelona, Spain)
This museum houses an impressive collection of Romanesque church paintings. 

Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
The Rijksmuseum  holds the largest collection of Dutch art and history from the 12th century to present.  Rijksmuseum is home to paintings of great masters such as Rembrant, Vermeer, Frans Hals and Jan Steen.

Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
The Van Gogh Museum houses the largest collection of Van Gogh's paintings and drawings 

Anne Frank Museum (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
A museum dedicated to Jewish wartime diarist Anne Frank who hid from Nazi persecution. 

Basilica of the Holy Blood (Bruges, Belgium)
This church houses a venerated relic of the Holy Blood of Jesus. 

Sisi Museum (Vienna, Austria)
The Sisi Museum houses numerous personal items that once belonged to Empress Elisabeth of Austria. 

The Imperial Apartments and Silver Collection  (Vienna, Austria)
The Hofburg Palace occupied by Emperor Franz Joseph and his wife Empress Elisabeth are furnished and decorated to the highest standards. The Imperial Silver Collection is an impressive collection of porcelain, glassware, silverware, table lines and cooking utensils necessary for running the imperial household. 

Museo del Cenacolo Vinciano (Milan, Italy)
The museum that holds Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper painted on the wall of Santa Maria della Grazie.  To preserve the painting, only 25 people are allowed to enter at one time for a period of 15 minutes and everyone must pass through a series of devices that remove clothing pollutants. 

The Museo Teatrale alla Scala (Milan, Italy)
This world-renowned opera house contains a collection of paintings, statues and costumes regarding opera history and La Scala. 

Castello Sforzesco (Milan, Italy)
A castle that houses a number of other museums which include Museum of Ancient Art which holds Michaelangelo's last sculpture Rondanini Pieta,  Museum of Musical Instruments and the Archeological Museum. 

Swarovski Crystal Worlds (Wattens, Austria)
This unique crystalline museum showcases the world’s biggest crystal weighing 137 pounds. 







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