I've been asked an interesting question yesterday that stumbled me first and made me think: which #museums do I like most?
There are certain topics that draw me in: Asian art, ancient history (and art), everything art nouveau & symbolism, old Dutch masters, design, Jewish stories, etc.
But what I like most is to learn something interesting and fascinating about something I did not know I was interested in before. To get my eyes opened to something.
@vicgrinberg universally, I'd say "natural science museums", but my favourite museum visit ever was to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. I also liked the Rijksmuseet in Stockholm. I absolutely hated the Louvre... I guess as long it's a greatly curated and organized museum, I'll love it, independent of the topic!
@vicgrinberg interesting question. I’m mostly interested in photography and paintings from around 1900 - today. Generally, I’m a fan of less is more in museums, I mean fewer exhibits in a room and lots of wall space around a painting. When there’s a lot, I tend to skip many and get stressed that I might miss something 😅
Also I love exhibitions that are collected around a topic rather than a time period and show development/different approaches to a theme over time.
@vicgrinberg I will always love all the big grandiose museums of Europe and places like the Smithsonians in Washington, DC. But I also love driving into a small town tucked away some place and discovering a local town's little museum, whether it is a quilt museum, a local history museum, the childhood home of some esoteric person from history. My hometown has two museums. One whole museum is just to show off a good-sized meteorite that crashed in a farmers field!
@vicgrinberg Small, offbeat museums maintained as labors of love by individuals or families, they usually contain the most interesting and authentic stuff. E.g., I learned more about Einstein the person at the Einsteinhaus in Bern than anywhere else, even including the massive multi-floor Einstein exhibit at the much bigger Bernisches Historisches.
But that said, must admit that my favorite remains the Museum of Stolen Goods in London. Because it has such an [ahem] eclectic collection.
@vicgrinberg I agree very much with your "eyes opened" point.
What I watch on YouTube is probably about 75% precisely that, with Rick Beato, Dianna Cowern (Physics Girl), Michael Stevens (vsauce), Paul Shillito (Curious Droid), and Amy Shira Teitel (The Vintage Space) at the top of my list.
@vicgrinberg Small museums that deal with a niche topic, as opposed to larger ones like the Met or the British Museum. They are generally the result of years of careful collection and curating. For example, some that I have enjoyed are the Tampere Lenin Museum in Finland, Museum on Indian Railways in New Delhi, DH Lawrence Museum in Nottingham, UK. Their specialization makes them interesting for me!
@vicgrinberg I REALLY like small regional historical museums, those that teach me about the history of the (small) town or city that I don't usually get elsewhere. Each one is unique, and they let me appreciate wherever I'm visiting that much more.
@justtheletteru these are a bit hit and miss for me, it really depends on how well they are done/told... But especially when we travel we try to do them to understand the historical and cultural context of the place.
@vicgrinberg I'm a real history nerd so every museum that touches history, by having paintings of historical figures, or historical artifacts are my kind of thing. Also musea that are historical places in itself I like. Especially if certain parts of it where left as they were 150 or 200 years ago. Teylers in Haarlem the Netherlands is such a place. https://www.teylersmuseum.nl/nl/collectie/gebouw-en-geschiedenis
@ditsch42 they totally count! Though for me they are funnily usually not the first choice (thus not listed among my favorites!) - I also like my museum experience a lot more quiet so while I love that kids are excited in science museums (that's what the museums aim at!), I'd rather hide someone with less people 😅
@vicgrinberg it's kinda hard because few European historical museums aren't partially full of stolen art. I do like the exhibitions, but it's certainly sad.
(The person who asked this question a) had a degree in museum science b) on a personal level had a very different answer from mine, pointing out his love for historic house museums and explaining why these especially.)
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