Moderna museet in Stockholm - Art on Skeppsholmen

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Moderna museet in Stockholm is a museum of modern and contemporary art, located on Skeppsholmen. There is also the Moderna Musee in Malmö. We checked out the art in Stockholm and share our experiences.

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Moderna museet in Stockholm

Moderna Museet exhibits art in the form of painting, sculpture, photography and art film from 1900 onwards.

As non-art connoisseurs, we were a bit worried about encountering art that we wouldn't understand, but at the same time we were open to what the visit would bring. On a positive note, the museum is free to visit (with the exception of some exhibitions) so you can easily peek inside for profit and loss.

Moderna museet is located at Exercisplan 4 on Skeppsholmen, in the centre of Stockholm.

Modern and contemporary art at Moderna Museet

The Moderna Musee in Stockholm has a large collection of modern and contemporary art, as well as new current exhibitions.

Can we start gathering instead of collecting? Gathering instead of collecting. Is this a question?

In the first room, we encountered art that, in different ways, touches on a conflict and a changing society. We liked this room - it was exciting, challenging and somewhat difficult. The same phrases kept coming out of the speakers: "Can we start gathering instead of collecting?". Gathering instead of collecting. Is this a question?"

The picture below shows the painting "The revolution will be female" by Marcel Dzama from the US and the artwork "Untitled (sirens)" by Ebba Matz from Sweden.

We also saw art by Anders Sunna, who described conflicts that have characterised his own life. As the son of a reindeer herding family, and later an artist, he describes the conflict with the reindeer industry in his art.

The artwork Omfalos by Lars Vilks

Moving on, we came to a room around the artwork "Omfalos" by Lars Vilks. Last summer we saw two other of his works, Nimis and Arx, on Kulla Peninsula in Skåne.

We were fascinated by the art, the walk through nature, the challenging ideas of statehood and, a little later, Vilks' sudden death. Because of all this, it was particularly interesting to see, and read about, the artwork Omfalos.

Film and art without rules

We continued past an artistic film, which we didn't really understand, but which kept us hooked for a while.

After that, the rooms continued to flow. Some art appealed to us. Others left us mostly confused. One room read "There are no rules", which is apparently a quote from the artist Eva Hesse. We like the idea that there are no rules for art, while sometimes it means that you ... don't get it.

History makes itself felt

The 'After the Wall' room displayed art from post-communist Europe. Now that artists were finally free from the constraints of state propaganda - they suddenly felt the need to express themselves about the Soviet era.

In another room there was art by Ernest Cole (1940-1990) who grew up in Pretoria, South Africa. Being categorised as 'coloured' (and not 'black') allowed him to work as a photographer, and he dedicated himself to documenting racial segregation. Here, it was not the art that made the content difficult to understand - it was rather difficult to understand how we humans function.

Swedish acquisitions and temporary exhibitions

To support the Swedish art scene in the wake of the pandemic, the government awarded Moderna Museet SEK 25 million to buy Swedish art. The grant resulted in the museum shopping 373 works, made between 1962-2021, by a total of 169 artists. We realised after our visit that we had missed this entire floor, so now we have reason to come back!

The Moderna Museet in Stockholm also hosts various temporary exhibitions. When we were here it was the premiere of the exhibition "Björn Lövin - the surrounding reality". You had to book a slot to see this exhibition, and all slots were sold out, so of course it's another reason to come back.

Our experience

Which art appeals to you varies, of course, and maybe that's the beauty of it. We found some works difficult to understand. Others made us react, talk, feel sad or laugh. If you find yourself on Skeppsholmen, we definitely recommend checking it out - both here and at the neighbouring ArkDes museum.

Moderna Museet's outdoor collection

There is also a lot of outdoor art around Moderna Museet. The one that caught our attention the most was the colourful 'Paradise' exhibition, but there is also plenty of other outdoor art.

More to see in the neighbourhood

The Moderna Museet in Stockholm is located on Skeppsholmen, and there are three more museums: ArkDes, the East Asian Museum and the Stockholm Toy Museum. It's also nice to stroll around Skeppsholmen just to check out all the beautiful boats and ships.

When you cross the Skeppsholm Bridge, you will reach Blasieholmen where you will find the National Museum. It is also not far to the lovely Kungsträdgården and the beautiful Old Town, with the castle and lots of other attractions.

Have you visited the Moderna Museum in Stockholm? Do you like looking at art? If so, do you prefer modern art or older art?

You might also like:

Visiting Skansen - open-air museum in Stockholm Prince Eugens Waldemarsudde - art in beautiful surroundings Thielska Galleriet on Djurgården - and a boat trip ArkDes - museum of architecture and design East Asian Museum in Stockholm - Japan, China, Korea Liljevalchs konsthall - art on Djurgården in Stockholm.