Friday, April 7, 2017

The Top 10 Most Visited Art Museums of 2016

Art has the ability to inspire and unite the masses. For many, art may just be something pretty to ponder; for others, it offers an outlet or a way to express one’s feelings, beliefs and passions; and, for those of you like myself, art sparks a fire within to change the world—even if we only change the world of one person.

Regardless of what art may mean to you, its impact across the globe is profound. And, in perfect time for April 8th’s Slow Art Day, below is a list of the top 10 most-visited art museums of 2016, according to an attendance survey by The Art Newspaper.

art-museums-the-liberty-leading-the-people-1830-delacroix

Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People is only one of thousands of masterpieces at the Louvre. Go figure it was the number one visited museum in the world this year.

1. Musée du Louvre | Paris | 7.4 Million Visitors

Even with a whopping 7.4 million visits in 2016, Louvre’s attendance has dropped by approximately 1.2 million from 2016, notes The Art Newspaper’s survey, adding that this decrease is most likely due to the drop in foreign tourism in Paris following the series of tragic terror attacks. “The Musée d’Orsay also experienced a fall, down to three million visitors from 3.4 million in 2015,” sites an article accompanying the survey findings. “But the Centre Pompidou, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, is less dependent on visitors from the US, China and elsewhere.” The Centre Pompidou experienced a boost of 275,000 visitors last year, bringing in around 3.3 million visitors total.

2. Metropolitan Museum of Art | New York | 7 Million Visitors

Including visits to all three venues—Fifth Avenue, the Met Breuer and the Cloisters, the Met experienced more than seven million visits in 2016, which is a record for the museum.

Art museums: Did you know that THE Rosetta Stone is housed in the British Museum?

Did you know that THE Rosetta Stone is housed in the British Museum?

3. British Museum | London | 6.4 Million Visitors

The Art Newspaper reports that the British Museum, which is free to visit and a single venue, drew over 6.4 million people last year.

4. National Gallery | London | 6.26 Million Visitors

Also located in London, the city’s National Gallery welcomed nearly 6.3 million visitors, which is a nice boost, notes the article, since 2015 strikes results in the temporary closure of many galleries.

5. Vatican Museums | Vatican City | 6 Million Visitors

With almost 6.1 million visitors in 2016, the Vatican Museums was a popular destination for many tourists, and we can see why with its vast array of famous works of art and incredible tours, which includes the Sistine Chapel.

 

A top 10 art museum of 2016: art-museums-tate-bourgeois

Few paintings reside in the Tate Modern wing, but it is home to Louise Bourgeois’ 1994 Spider. (Marcus Leith/Tate)

6. Tate Modern | London | 5.8 Million Visitors

With nearly 5.9 million visitors, a record high for the newly-expanded museum, Tate Modern “remains the most popular modern and contemporary art museum in the world,” explains the article, according to the survey findings.

7. National Palace Museum | Taipei | 4.67 Million Visitors

Located in Taiwan’s capital, Taipei, the National Palace Museum drew almost 4.7 million people in 2016. According to The Art Newspaper’s article, the museum experienced a decline of roughly 600,000 visitors compared to 2015.

A top ten Art Museum of 2016: The DC National Gallery of Art owns Romare Bearden's Tomorrow I May Be Far Away, a collage from 1967.

The DC National Gallery of Art owns Romare Bearden’s Tomorrow I May Be Far Away, a collage from 1967.

8. National Gallery of Art | Washington, D.C. | 4.26 Million Visitors

A popular hotspot for many tourists, more than 4.26 million people stopped to visit the National Gallery of Art in D.C. last year.

9. State Hermitage Museum | St. Petersburg | 4.12 Million Visitors

According to its website, the State Hermitage Museum is home to more than 1 million works of art, which is most likely a factor in its nearly 4.12 million visitors in 2016.

10. Reina Sofía | Madrid | 3.65 Million Visitors

To conclude the top 10 most frequented museums in 2016, the Reina Sofía welcomed about 3.65 million people last year, which is nearly 400,000 more visitors compared to 2015.

Read the entire article from The Art Newspaper here.

And if you love art as much as we do, join the ArtistsNetwork community today for ideas, inspiration, instruction and more! 

Did you visit any museums in 2016? Let us know which ones were your favorite, and if you plan to visit any this year, in the comments below!

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