The art of women in Cannes

We visited the Female Artists of the Mougins Museum, in Mougins, a small village on a hill near Cannes. Full of exclusively female artists – from Berthe Morisot in the 19th century and Frida Kahlo in the early 20th to contemporary figures such as Tracey Emin – it houses an incredible collection of often overlooked art and artists. We visited on a rainy October day and it was remarkably quiet and calm. I particularly enjoyed the abstract works – well worth a trip up the hill.
James

Secret church in Amsterdam’s red light district

Ons’ Lieve Heer op Solder is a bit of a mouthful, but it is the best museum I have ever visited. Our Lord in the Attic is a hidden gem in the centre of Amsterdam and well worth a visit. “Our Lord” is a clandestine church originating after the Reformation when Catholics were no longer allowed to hold public holy masses. It enabled Catholics to worship, but only in private; thus creating an incredibly intimate and secretive experience. The canal house feels like a Tardis as you move from what seems like a labyrinth of rooms, all leading to what appears to be a doll’s house church. A sliver of heaven in the middle of the red light district!
Ryan

Berlin’s pioneering socialist artist

I came across the Käthe-Kollwitz Museum only because I was staying nearby, just off Berlin’s glamorous Ku’damm avenue. This small, intimate building houses probably the best collection of Kollwitz’s prints, drawings, posters, sculptures and woodcuts, inspired by and illustrating her lifelong socialist beliefs with real power and poignancy. Her life and work were profoundly shaped by inseparable personal and political tragedies.
Leslie

Turin’s mountain museum

We visited the Museo Nazionale della Montagna (National Museum of Mountains) in Turin last summer. Having spent the previous four weeks hiking in the Italian Alps, it was the perfect end to our trip. The staff are knowledgable and there are some excellent exhibits exploring the history of our relationship with mountains along with displays of mountaineering gear and derring-do over the past 150 years. There’s also a rooftop terrace with a great view of the city and mountains beyond. A fantastic way to spend a few hours and a must for any lover of mountains.
Samantha McGrady

Captivating artefacts from the far east, Porto

Set in a late 18th-century palace belonging to the Porto bourgeoisie, the Museo Nacional Soares dos Reis, founded in 1833, is considered to be Portugal’s oldest art museum. It features an absorbing collection of Portuguese painting dating from the 16th to 20th centuries, but particularly captivating are the rooms displaying Japanese and Chinese artefacts, which arrived in Portugal off trading ships from the far east. Don’t miss the tranquil garden at the back of the museum.
Peter

Homage to Copernicus in Kraków

The Jagiellonian University Museum has a wonderful collection for those interested in history and science. The university was founded in 1364 and a young Copernicus (who worked out that the sun was at the centre of the known universe rather than the Earth) studied there in the 1490s. Many objects related to its most famous student and his heliocentric theory are showcased, alongside quirky objects related to the history of the university, and the history of Poland. The guides are very knowledgable, the visit is affordable, and it’s conveniently located in Kraków’s beautiful historical city centre.
Aline T Marinho

Quiet contemplation and wonder in Barcelona

In a stunningly restored mattress factory (La Casaramona) designed by Catalan modernist architect Josep Puig i Cadafach, you can find the CaixaForum, just up the road from the Plaça d’Espanya in Barcelona. There are some buildings that eclipse the art that’s inside it, but the Caixa specialises in having a revolving display of exhibitions from photography to sculpture to immersive art, in an atmosphere of quiet contemplation and wonder. It is near the Miró Foundation and so many visitors pass it by without realising how great it is. Within its curvy walls there is a cafe for a welcome cold drink.
Liz Owen Hernandez

An airship and Trump toddlers in Prague

I would really recommend DOX Centre for Contemporary Art in Prague. It’s a little way out of the touristy city centre but is an excellent art gallery within a stunning feat of architecture – a steel and wood airship (built in 2016) seemingly floats out of a postwar factory building. In 2018 I saw a brilliant exhibit, which was a white room filled with giant toddlers with Trump faces.
Katherine L

Paris’s ‘most enchanting’ museum

For me, the most enchanting museum in Paris is the Musée National Gustave Moreau, located in the former home of the 19th-century symbolist artist. Stendhal syndrome is surely a real risk in this glorious space, as one staggers among the dizzying, gigantic paintings painted in elaborate, decorative detail. Classical mythology and intimate biblical scenes are presented in vast gilt frames alongside looser drawings and watercolours housed in cabinets with pivoting shutters for ease of browsing. A spiral staircase between studio floors adds to the magic and the fascinating private apartments offer insight into a brilliant mind. Truly inspiring.
Petra Painter

Winning tip: Bronze gods in Piraeus

The Archaeological Museum of Piraeus contains a wonderful collection of artefacts spanning 2,000 years of Greek history and is generally less hectic than bigger museums in Athens. In pride of place are the Piraeus bronzes, a truly staggering collection of statues (including the Piraeus Apollo and bronze statues of Athena and Artemis) that left such an impression on me that I now have tattoos of two of them. It’s only 20 minutes from the centre of Athens by train, and is a wonderful place to explore while you wait for your ferry connection to the islands.
Ben Holmes