Top European City Breaks For Lovers of Art

Every major city in Europe houses at least one famous art gallery. With that in mind it’s hard to choose the best to visit if you want to spend your city break taking in as many art galleries as possible. From contemporary to classic art, we look at the six best European destinations for art galleries.

6. Amsterdam
From the Old Dutch Masters to the fascinating work of Vincent Van Gogh, Amsterdam offers something for everyone. The Van Gogh Museum is home to more than 200 of his paintings including Sunflowers and The Bedroom as well as works by fellow post impressionists and friends of the artist. The National Art Museum or, Rijksmuseum, is the best place to view pieces from the Dutch Golden Age such as Rembrandt’s The Night Watch and Vermeer’s The Milkmaid.

5. Barcelona
The best thing for art lovers in Barcelona is that you can see famous pieces of landmark art without even stepping into a gallery. The work of architect Gaudi can be experienced all over the city from the Park Guell to the Sagrada Familia. In fact in Park Guell it’s not uncommon to see budding artists take their art materials to the park for inspiration. Barcelona was also the home of Picasso and the Picasso Museum includes pieces from his many artistic periods. Barcelona was also the home of surrealist painter Joan Miro and a huge amount of his work can be viewed at the Joan Miro Foundation. Contemporary art lovers can also take in the Museum of Contemporary Art which travels through the Abstract movement, the Avant Garde, anti-minimalism to today’s artists.

4. Paris
Paris is home to two of the world’s most famous art museums. As art bloggers like Art of the Country know, the Louvre is the largest museum of art in the world. In addition to housing a huge amount of famous antiquities, is of course home to the Mona Lisa by Da Vinci along with 7500 other paintings from the 13th-19th centuries.The second most famous art gallery in Paris is the Musee D’Orsay which is home to arguably the best collection of impressionist and post-impressionist painting in the world.

3. St Petersburg
The State Hermitage Museum needs to be experienced for is sheer size alone. It is home to one of the largest collections of art in the world and has over three million exhibits ranging from prehistoric art, items from antiquity and countless European fine art masterpieces. No visitor can expect to see everything at the State Hermitage, even if you went every day for a week. The best way to see the highlights is to take a guided tour. There are more art galleries to visit in St Petersburg including the Academy of Fine Arts or the Museum of Non-Conformist Art, which is a very different place altogether.

2. London
London is fast becoming a world centre for art. From the vast collections at the National Gallery, The British Museum and the Tate Museum to the more contemporary offerings of the Tate Modern London is an art lover’s paradise. London is also home to many smaller galleries and pop up exhibitions, many of which you can read about on the blog at http://www.jacksonsart.com.

1. Florence
Florence is home to the Uffizi, one of the oldest and most well-known galleries in the world, and also a favourite amongst many art critics. It’s also home to the Galleria Dell’Accademia, the Duomo Museum, the Galleria Palatina and Galleria d’Arte Moderna (as well as many, many more). As the birthplace of the Renaissance, Florence is the rightful home to many of the greatest pieces of art ever. Michelangelo’s David can be found at the Galleria Dell’Accademia whilst you can experience the Italian masters at the Uffizzi where you can take in Botticelli, Da Vinci, Raphael and Caravaggio.