The Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery
The Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery is one of the city’s most celebrated attractions. Built in 1901, this magnificent building was initially intended to house the Glasgow International Exhibition held of the same year, and today it is home to over 8,000 pieces. The architects Sir John W. Simpson and E.J. Milner Allen designed the gallery in a stunning Spanish Baroque style and it was built in striking red sandstone, making it stand out against the green of the surrounding Kelvingrove Park.
In Glasgow today, there is an urban myth that the building was constructed back-to-front, and that the architects threw themselves from one of the towers in despair. Happily, it is only a myth, as the grand entrance was always meant to face away from the road towards the park.
The gallery and museum have rich and varied collections. The gallery includes pieces from the Dutch Old Masters and French Impressionists (including one of the largest and finest collections of 17th century Dutch and Flemish art in the UK) and one of the most important collections of 19th century French oils in the UK. It is also the largest collection of Scottish art, including galleries dedicated to the Glasgow Boys and Scottish Colourists. Moreover, the gallery boasts possession of fantastic original paintings, such as Salvador Dali’s Christ of St John of the Cross.
Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The museum is no less astonishing. There are magnificent exhibitions on a rich variety of topics including dinosaurs and natural history, Arms and Armour (one of the finest private collections of European arms and armour in the world), Ancient Egypt, Scottish history and archaeology, and world history such as Africa and Oceania.
Next month, Glasgow celebrates the memory of one of its most famous artists: Charles Rennie Mackintosh. The Kelvingrove opens its doors to the festival and invites you to join in a series of events including life drawing classes for adults and a performance inspired by Mackintosh’s landscape paintings.
With free entry and daily tours at 11am and 2.30pm each day you’ve no excuse to miss out!
