The Menil Collection

Ton of interesting art, real masterpieces. it’s free and not overly crowded. what more could you ask for?

Very great free art museum in Montrose! It’s a nice sized museum and free to the public. I really liked how there was a mix of old and modern art. One modern art exhibit is not recommended for children and they mean it! I only wish they let us take photos but it is not allowed. The security is very strict as well. Right down the street from Rothko Chapel.

I really enjoyed the Copley exhibit, they are right, it’s not appropriate for young children.
The collection seems very well kept, I enjoyed the use of light both natural and unnatural in some of the exhibits.
I was a little sad that I couldn’t take pictures

The Menil Collection is a great museum to visit! First off, it’s free though they do offer the option of making a donation when you sign in at the door. The museum is divided by style and period with a variety of collections. I enjoyed my visit and will be back soon.

Still, quiet, serene, self-​engaging. The Menil is perfect for anyone who may be in need of escaping their tumultuous reality, for someone who grasps a desire to dive into different worlds, different eras, various cultures, alternative paths and thought processes… But really, it’s a great place for everyone who may just want pictures around a free museum! Hehhhh. It’s a nice place to walk around outside. The inside of the museum is actually very quiet: whispers all around! Maybe not the most recommended place to bring your three year old child into, unless they enjoy interpreting art in a respectably quiet manner. Heh heh
The collections within the exhibits include various sorts of sculptures, paintings, photographs, artifacts, and more. The staff is kind and the guards won’t fault in watching all the visitors carefully. I was on a super time crunch so I wasn’t able to spend much time here, but I’d definitely be back of course, you know. Because it’s free.

A Great place to spend a couple of hours plus no park and entrance fee to view all the great exhibit on display. You have to walk pass the museum café and cross the street to get to the main building. They have a permanent display as well as a temporary one so its not always same art piece to view. Its not pack with people so you get to enjoy and appreciate the detail of the art without having to rush thru it. Very clean and well lit displays. Enjoy the private collection room although a bit encompassing to be surrounded by so many unique pieces in one small room.

Amazing! They have a great collection and the best part is it is FREE! They have Robert Gober, Picasso and more! No photos though!

Awesome place! It’s free and also has its own parking lot that’s free! Beautiful paintings and sculptures here, it’s very decent sized, spent about 2 hours there maybe even more if I looked more throughly. The staff was very informative at the front. The lady was very nice.
You aren’t allowed to take pictures here, not knowing the reason. Honestly I took a few pictures so what. So did everyone else in this review thread did lol. Only like a couple it’s best to respect the rules and keep your cameras off majority of the time!

This venue is a great little museum tucked away in the Montrose area. Best of all, admission is totally free. It has a very diverse collection of art, ranging from Byzantine Frescos to Surrealist to African Tribal. Each deceptively large wing has an impressive collection laid out in a fashion that makes the entire place seem very small and intimate. I’m particularly fond of the frescos and the surrealist art wings. The collections are very impressive, and they rotate pieces from time to time.
There’s a park on the adjacent block which is part of the museum property, and a café one block to the north. I’ve never been to the café, but both the park and café always seem to have a decent crowd.

Great little museum. If you have young kids and you want to start teaching them museum etiquette this is the place. It is a one story museum with many different rooms to display many different types of art. Most of the rooms are spacious for kids to roam. At anytime if your young one gets bored/​temper tantrum you are not far from the exit.
Out side the museum is surrounded by open lawn for kids to run around to get some energy out. Also a great picnic area for lunch.
Exhibits change but most are kid friendly just ask the front desk when you check in.

Boring, stiff and weird but to each his own. I get that Houston is an eclectic mish mash of styles and tastes and that’s cool but seriously !!!
First there is just no parking… ever. Tons of people spread out all over the grass drinking wine and doing whatever. They aren’t even there for the exhibit but taking up space making it hard to enjoy.
Next my biggest issue is the photo policy… they don’t want you to take photos.
I didn’t enjoy the setup, the layouts and it was hard to appreciate anything due to the awkward displays.
I know art is subjective but some of the items were just too ridiculous to be considered art.
Too many people. Not enough art variations and descriptions and just somewhat of a let down.
This could use some work and it’s own parking spot for people who want to go inside not just hang out on the grass.

the Menil collection
René Magritte
Andy Warhol
Jasper Johns
Robert Rauschenberg
Cy Twombly
Francis Bacon
Mark Rothko
Clyfford Still
Paul Klee
Fernand Léger
Pablo Picasso
Jackson Pollack
Jean Dubuffet
Georges Braque
Edouard Vuillard
Paul Cézanne
Henri Matisse
Georges Rouault
Henri Rousseau
Willem de Kooning
Salvador Dali
Giorgio de Chirico
Max Ernst

Great art and all to be seen for free. Range of time periods as well, and they also have great info brochures. The staff will follow you, they are obsessively strick, not allowing any photos anywhere (even in a hallway as one mother learned taking a photo of her child and being yelled at). Also don’t point or come within an arms reach of anything, you will be yelled at. Great place all overall though.

How could you not like a free museum? A great collection that includes historical work as well as more contemporary work over several buildings. I prefer contemporary art, so I really enjoyed the Flavin (though it was a little tricky to find) and the Twombly gallery. Definitely worth stopping by, even just for a few galleries. Because, why not? It’s free!

What’s not to like? A free museum split into a couple buildings with rotating galleries along with big roomy, light-​filled architecture.
There is plenty of greenery surrounding the museum which you can hang out before or after. Plus it’s rarely crowded since it’s free.
We didn’t have too much time to roam and explore, but the standout currently is the infinite machine exhibit. Such an interesting piece of art — I probably could have spent an hour in there listening and watching.

What a great free museum right in the heart of Houston. The museum is small, but it has an interesting collection and some great exhibits. Since it’s free, I don’t feel bad if I walk in and only feel like looking at one particular gallery!

I have always enjoyed going to a museum or gallery to see an exhibition of any type. Never have I seen anywhere like the Menil Collection. I first went about a month ago just due to the fact it’s about a mile or so from my place. WOW! The feeling you get in the main building is one of intimacy. I really felt almost as if I were at someone’s home — other museums I have visited (including here in town) have felt very functional and rather cold. The staff here are amazing, never pushy but always ready to answer a question or give information. The surrounding grounds are an attraction themselves. Big beautiful trees are the prettiest in town. How lucky for Houstonians to have such a gem!

It was only when one of the older guards here barked at me to stop taking photos did I realize that I hadn’t been to the Menil in a long, long time. I didn’t know the museum reversed their photography policy but the guard sternly said that taking photos was never permitted.
Well, that’s incorrect. The Menil used to allow personal photography before the smartphone age. (I have attached some of my old photos so Unilocalers at least have some indication of the great collection here.)
While almost all other major museums in the US and Canada now permit photography, the Menil has this notice: ‘To help us maintain the Menil’s tranquil atmosphere, we ask all visitors to please refrain from taking photographs inside the museum.’ That’s silly. The design of this renowned building by Renzo Piano has tranquility embedded into it. Only a stampede could disturb that equilibrium.
I’m giving the wonderful Menil a low rating only because of a policy that is so out-​of-​step in the 21^st century.

The Menil collection is a museum where a pencil stuck through a canvas is considered art. That is ridiculous; I could have done that.
Lots of simple art here nothing, but stuff you wouldn’t consider to be art of course.
I wasn’t a fan of the museum.

The Menil Collection is definitely the hidden gem of Houston’s art scene. It has such a serene atmosphere both inside and outside. The Menil houses a vast collection of artwork ranging from Andy Warhol to Pablo Picasso to René Magritte. It is the perfect size, has a wide variety, and you can definitely spend a couple of hours here. One of the current rotating art exhibits is Takis: The Fourth Dimension. This exhibit is amazing due to the fact that the artist incorporates electromagnetism within the artwork. Not only is The Menil Collection completely free, but it is also right next door to the Rothko Chapel, another great place to check out.

Arte en un edificio contemporaneo magnifico. El colección de Menil ofrece arte de varias estilos en galerías cómodos adentro un ejemplo de modernismo. Disfruto este estilo de arquitectura y la mezcla de arte.
Los antiguidades son siempre los mismos pero todo lo de más cambia en seguida.
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