NGV International

I am an artist, this is my church

Iconic Melbourne, Victorian and Australian gallery. It’s located in an interesting and well set out building on leafy StKilda road just a short walk from the Melbourne CBD. The gallery has an excellent permanent collection and always has interesting exhibitions too. We did the Andy Warhol/​Ei Wei Wei exhibition today. And most excellent it was too. The gallery has good meal and snack options. The gift shop too is very good. Depending on your interest, allow about 2 – 3 hours for your visit here.

Brilliant — no enough time to see everything we wanted to do — make sure you schedule at least half a day to see all the exhibits

Went there for the Andy Warhol and Ai Weiwei Exhibition.
It was a pretty good experience. The venue is very modern and all the art pieces have enough space.
I was very impressed by the modern part of the exhibition with video/​audio and interactive parts.
Seems they really care about the exhibitions that are happening there.

5 stars for being free, minus the exhibitions, such as Andy Warhol and Ai Weiwei at the time I was here. The water running glass pane entrance is a keeper for the little ones and has caught attention without even entering the gallery. You must check in your backpacks and large items. You’ll be given a ticket, as well as a clean bag if you need to carry your valuables. A large chandelier like art piece stood at the entrance (behind the water running glass pane) and caught many eyes. The multiple bikes upon bikes to create a massive 3-​D effect also caught eyes for a picturesque moment.
Past the massive bikes artwork was a child friendly play area inside and outside. «Dotted gum-​like dot» seats were scattered red, blue, yellow and purple among the great room to parallel the mosaic ceiling. Bright pink and silver human sized pillows sprawled all over the fake turf outside with a hippo and gator statues on each corner. Further out was the «dome-​like fort with chairs and tables and other artwork. Perfect for children.
National Gallery of Victoria had rooms and eras and hallways of artwork. You might even get lost once, twice or three times if you’re not paying attention. At the end you can check out the museum store and café. You could spend about 2 — 3 hours at this museum depending on your interests.

NGV entry is free and if that alone is not enough to tempt you to spend a day admiring art that you may or may not understand (more often it’s the latter for me), then there’s also plenty to do and look at that’s less intimidating to us the non art experts.
There’s the gift shop for one where you can browse through some cool gifts for yourself or friends.
The kids area is interactive and fun,
The glass wall at the front entrance doubles as a water feature and can be quite mesmerising to look at too.
If you’re a visitor to Melb, the NGV is a great free pit stop and only a short walk from Flinders st station and the Various feeding and watering hole of Southbank
Tip:
If you happen to visit during the Warhol/​Ai Wei Wei exhibition, don’t pass the kids section. There’s a super cool photo booth surprise, trust me it’s fun

NGV International is truly extraordinary. There’s an astounding variety of art, sculptures and historical pieces ranging from art from ancient Egyptian tombs to the latest in digital design.
The very solid permanent collection is complimented by a diverse selection of temporary exhibitions. There’s so many different sections that even after several visits I keep discovering more. I find the Asian art section especially fascinating. If you’ve got kids in tow there’s a lot they’ll like, including descriptions in kid friendly language in some sections. I really love seeing happy kids in the galleries.
If you want to take a break head into the Great Hall at the back of the foyer. I could spend hours in there on the comfy chairs gazing at the glorious stained glass ceiling. Alternatively, head out into the beautiful gallery gardens where there’s more sculptures. The bookshop is also worth a look.
Entry to all but occasional special exhibitions is free, but there is donation boxes in the foyer if you’d like to contribute to the gallery’s work.

This is the first time I have visited NGV International, and it was my first port of call during a short visit to Melbourne :)
We didn’t come here for the blockbuster exhibition, but rather just to see the permanent collection. This place is fantastic — but what a rabbit warren of a place!!! It is so massive, that I’m sure there were plenty of areas that we couldn’t even find — I think the signage is somewhat lacking.
Saying that, we still thoroughly enjoyed our time here — highlights for me were the massive tapestries by the Australian Tapestry Workshop in the hall downstairs (one of the reasons I came here in the first place), and the ‘Late 19^th & early 20^th Century Paintings & Decorative Arts Gallery’ on Level 2 with a spectacular Barbara Hepworth sculpture (‘Eidos’) as well as an impressive David Hockney and Mark Rothko.
The NGV International is curated in an interesting way — there is a lot of spare space, and a lot of amazing works that are in storage … saying that, I still found a lot that I loved — and I am hoping that some of my faves are back on display again next time I visit!

Seriously, I really can’t say much about NGV that hasn’t been said before…
In this instance when we visited we had a energetic 3 year old with us and I’m telling you that the free children’s area was a big hit!
It is great to take kids to places filled with educational activities instead of pits of coloured balls.
Being from the country her parents were really grateful we took this little one there to have a play.
we got to make stop motion movies and dance on a lit up dance floor among other things.
I highly recommend NGV, not just for adults you know!

George, a middle aged man with buzzed hair and a van dyke beard, is one of the best museum staff members I’ve come across in the world. He is an avid studier of all the art and historical styles in the gallery, and he can show you where to find whatever you’re looking for. And unlike the cold, stern demeanor (with a look like they expect you to shoplift a painting) that some docents are notorious for, George is eager to help with a smile on his face.
The fact that the well-​publicized Hermitage/​Catherine the Great exhibit cost as much as a tribute to the queen herself keeps this budget-​savvy traveller from giving the NGV 5 stars. But, with all those bus ads and billboards I don’t blame them for wanting to recoup some revenue.
With so many free exhibits staffed by such lovely employees, the National Gallery of Victoria is a must-​see for anyone who visits or calls Melbourne their home.

The National Gallery of Victoria is one of the best art galleries in Australia and one of my favorite places to bring visiting friends from overseas. A huge collection of classic and contemporary are is masterfully curated and displayed across multiple rooms and open spaces.
Houses in a monumental stone building complete with reflection moat and a great waterfall entrance, the NGV makes a statement — art is taken very seriously in Melbourne.
The gallery hosts a number of permanent exhibits, mainly on the big names: Picasso, Warhol etc. There is also some really interesting design and fashion exhibits on permanent display. It’s the well curated and ever changing contemporary collection that I adore though. Large installation, light works, sound installations and even interactive are are all a common feature.
There are a few cafés on site though I recommend waiting for a nice sunny day, getting a picnic pack from the foyer café and relaxing in their sculpture garden out back — so relaxing. NGV is great for all ages and all levels of art enthusiasts.

Beautiful gallery! Free is so nice, I loved walking around here for hours. Plenty of space for the exhibits and not too crowded.

Went to the NGV Romance was Born exhibition — it was great for kids and even babies! The kids & babies (and ahem young at heart) can draw pictures on iPads and email it to friends and families. Older kids can make a necklace with glitter and ribbons. I want to be a kid too!
NGV has a great locker room where u can leave ur prams and awesome space with stained glass where people can sit and rest.
They also have a water fountain for refilling bottles which is always nice when you are out and about.

This is an awesome art gallery. I love the architecture of the building, lots of well-​lit interior spaces and suspended walkways. The way the art is laid out is intuitive, but even if you take a wrong turn you’ll end up walking through the entire exhibit anyway.
The permanent collection is large — you could easily spend 2 – 3 hours here, even at a fast pace. It’s also free!
They’ve got some pretty good collections here. Make sure to check out the very good Asian exhibit on the main floor, the early renaissance religious stuff, and the Dutch masters in the European collection (a couple of Rembrandts in there). The impressionist-​era collection is decent enough with some Manet, Renoir, and Pissaro. I really liked the antiquities, but you’ll want to hurry to get a look now before Australia is further shamed into giving them back to their countries of origin.
My only real complaint is that there is zero Australian art at this «national» gallery. Also shouldn’t it be the state gallery? Since when is Victoria a nation? Vive le Victoria libre!

NGV. This appeared to be a fairly small Museum when compared to the Met or MoMA in New York or LACMA in Los Angeles. The outside décor was really nice like the rest of Melbourne. However, I was short on time and I didn’t go inside like how I don’t do with unattractive women… Jk?

Every now and then my sanity goes out the window and I splurge on the ridiculous food things. In this case it was for $ 5.50 for a single macaron. Not just any macaron, it was the «Royal» blue macaron done in the spirit of all things Gaultier. This consisted of a cobalt blue macaron with a custard and raspberries place in a crown formation for its filling. It was well over the top and I felt a little decadent and oh so lah-​di-​dah. My coffee was a Long Black $ 3.70 and help cut through the sweetness. Yes, those dang raspberries were super sweet!

I must say that I am coming to really appreciate art galleries, especially spending an afternoon standing and staring at paintings. Okay, some people might say ‘why bother’ but I am starting to find that one can get quite a lot out of staring at a painting that maybe television (at least where I am concerned) is becoming somewhat obsolete.
The NGV has a pretty good collection, though they do have more than the standard paintings and sculptures that other art galleries seem to collect. Amongst all of these works of art you will also find furniture and other ornaments, including a collection from a number of English manufactures, such as Wedgwood (though I am still not convinced that a plate, no matter how decorative it is, that comes out of a factory can be considered art — in fact my friend and I had a hearty debate over that one point).
There is also a small collection of antiques from Ancient Greece, Rome, and Meso-​America, though they are crammed away in a couple of small rooms (there are also some things from Ancient Egypt, which includes a sarcophagus, but it’s empty state suggests that the mummy may have got up and wondered away a long time ago). There is also an area containing art from Asia, though since I end up spending most of my time wondering around the European collection I tend not to make it to this part of the gallery.
I probably should also mention that they also have a number of exhibitions come through, the last one being a collection of Renaissance art from the Royal Spanish Court, and the year before there was a collection of paintings by Monet (and one Renoir, which happened to be a picture of Monet right next to a painting of Renoir, which was painted by — yep, you guessed it, Monet). It is a shame that the impressionist room is so small, though I suspect that if you want to see art by the impressionists you may have to travel all the way to France (which is something that I would consider a possibility).

The National Gallery of Victoria (International) is a wonderful gallery space: Very modern with lots of clean, sharp edges; wide-​open spaces; lots of move-​about room throughout the various exhibitions; super clean, tasteful and sophisticated. The layout can be a bit disorienting, with what seems like a myriad of hallways and corridors; however, that only enhances the art of meandering and taking things at a leisurely pace. Jean-​Paul Gaultier and David Shrigley both had innovative and provocative exhibitions going on during our visit. What an illuminating and privileged experience it was to catch these two! An outdoors exhibition of «scents» was quite fascinating (although, to be honest, the whole concept failed to coalesce in my opinion). Still, though, it was a refreshing incorporation of bringing art to an outdoor format. The space planning for the permanent Asian gallery on the second level is calming and Zen-​like in atmosphere, and flows like a peaceful brook. Beautiful and stunning works of ancient history! Unfortunately, due to time constraints, we were unable to catch the European gallery, nor the galleries on the 3^rd and 4^th levels. That said, the overall experience was educating and well-​worth the 22-​bucks! Speaking for myself, I can say, unequivocally, that I cannot wait for a revisit to complete my tour of the NGV International!!!

Although this place is incomparable to my favourite art museum in New York (MoMA), NGV has its own perks. Upon entering, there’s a cloak bar for you to check in your items. There’s an easy-​to-​spot information desk near the entrance as well.
There’s quite a lot to see in the gallery. It’s very children friendly as well with their ongoing exhibition, projects, programs and activities for kids. I love the fact that they always have new programs lined up to keep me popping back for a visit. They even have interesting talks and live music performances that complement the exhibition’s theme.
If you’re hungry, there’s a little café shop located at the ground floor. I have not tried anything there so I am not able to review about their food. I enjoy roaming about the gift shop and browsing through various books, scarfs, and designs.

If you’re here for an exhibition and staying in Melbourne cbd… please use public transportation. I think there is a direct tram line to this area. or even better just walk there. I’ve made the rookie mistake of driving here because I was already on the road with a car. it took me over 1.5hrs to travel less than 3 km. Once you get here and depending on which area you want to get to, there’s different car parks (if you’re driving) I had to get to the National Gallery of Victoria so I went into that car park. Very convenient and just up the stairs for where I needed to be. But apparently for high demand periods it will get busy and you may not be able to find a spot even in the car park. Biggest tip is to just public transport. I was there for an event and to view Jean Paul Gaultier’s exhibition. It was well worth it. Inside NGV service was great and very well organised.

Quite large, this gallery is filled with pieces that will make you stop for a second to take in. The Pop piece in the Modern section is stand out by itself. It isn’t a place you can walk through and see everything in an hour. I was here till closing time, and still have more to see and come back to gawk at. I was impressed since the moment I entered and grazed past the water wall.

Free entry. Free art.
Fancy tea. Fancy coffee. Fancy cookies.
What more does a Melbourne girl want?
Whenever the opportunity arises i love sneaking into the NGV for a bit of me time. A few key pieces of work still take my breath away. And a few others bring a smile. I love that the main areas of the gallery are free to explore. With minimal paid areas.
The NGV has a nice basic café on the ground level and a really fancy café, with waiters on the first level.

NGV is a great asset to the Melbourne culture scene. They have permanent exhibits, but I always find myself drawn there for their rotating exhibitions.
Recently, ‘Melbourne Now’ spread over the Fed Square and St Kilda Road sites and featured some delightful, interactive, and inspiring installations. I loved the snap shots of Collingwood home life constructed in frosting, retro tea-​towel displays, and the mirrored disco room. (And it was all free!)
During White Night 2013 they also hosted an event favourite — a giant foaming fountain. And for their Marie Antoinette exhibit, they had all-​night entry plus a party for Bastille Day. (A paid exhibit, but discounted for the Bastille day event.)
Sometimes galleries can get a reputation for being stuffy or snobbish, but the NGV exhibits add some life and fun to the Melbourne Arts scene.

No matter what the event, NGV is a great place to lose yourself for a few hours. There is so much on that you will need visit multiple times to even scratch the surface.
Great on a hot day (AIRCON!).
Don’t forget to make a wish and throw a coin in the pond.

Enjoyed a couple of hours wandering around seeing the artistic side of the city. So many galleries to see and enjoy

There were 2 NGV and the international one (this one) was located next to the Arts Centre. We came here for the Monet exhibit and we were blown away by the beauty. They didn’t have Monet’s famous large scale paintings (Great Decorations), but it was still worth the visit.

OK, I have to confess that the first time I went to NGV was because I had to use their male room, I went to ask the officer standing in front of the entrance where the toilet was and he helpfully showed me. Then I came out and looked at all the displays exhibiting the gallery while at the same time feeling guilty that the guard only let me use the toile and here I come seeing the entire exhibition for free. Nonetheless, I went through with my sightings and enjoyed the exhibition to its full extent. When coming out the door I went to the reception and confessed only to find out that it was free. It was embarrassing.
SInce then, I have been accustomed to taking all my friends and family who either comes here from overseas or interstate and all of them seems to enjoy it.
The gallery changes from time to time and there is currently paintings by Claude Monet on display until 8 September by the name of «Monet’s Gardens» and this one costs AU$ 26.00 for adults and there are also concessions for concession card holders and children’s tickets.

On the list of free things to do in Melbourne, this is near the top. I mean… it has to be. And their temporary exhibits, which they DO charge for, always seem to be fantastic (Monet, etc.) and are reasonably priced (but busy as a result).
It’s easy to get here. It’s quick to get in — no lines, no security, no ticket booths. Just strolling around the museum is the best way to do it, and you’ll find great pieces of art from all over the world and all mediums. It’s very easy to spend a couple of hours here, even if you are not all that knowledgeable in art. There are also free tours that you should certainly take advantage of if you can time it right!
I have never had the food here, but the restaurant always appears packed and the food looks good, but expensive. I probably would never eat here.

The new Monet’s Garden exhibition from the Musee Marmottan Monet in Paris is simply outstanding, and while expensive at $ 26 per person, it’s absolutely worth it.
From the years of painting waterlilies in his garden at Giverny, to the more broad and vibrant strokes of his works as his eyesight was diminishing, the exhibition provides a fantastic overview of Monet’s work and his endless attempts to capture nature as it presented itself to him.

I remember my first visit to the NGV when I was 8. The artist was Monet and I look back on that experience with fondness in the same way many people look back on their first concert.
I’m still a big fan of the NGV and love that there are terrific works on on display for free (read it: FREE) all the time, so it’s possible to pop in for 20 minutes relief from the business of the city… or take a couple of hours and lounge about on the sofas, read a book and relax with the backdrop of fine art and the gentle hum of visitors.
The current contemporary Indonesian art is especially good.

Ah, the NGV International has an excellent selection of shows, and it’s a great space. There is room to move, and exhibitions often have a fair bit of seating for those who need it. The rotating exhibitions can cost a bit to enter, though they honour all sorts of concession cards & reciprocal agreements with other museums.
I won’t review specific shows here, no need, but I will say this:
EXCELLENT PARENTS’ ROOM!
Need a place to change your baby in Melbourne city? It’s worth heading down to NGV International — they have a large parents’ room with changing tables, pleasant seating for feeding (and resting), sinks, dim lighting in some sections, a play pen for toddlers, and a microwave.
PS: There is also a regular little accessible toilet with a baby change table, but directly opposite is the much larger and considerably nicer parents’ room. Seriously recommended.

Celebrating its 150^th birthday in 2011, the National Gallery of Victoria is not only Australia’s oldest public art gallery but also arguably Melbourne’s most important; playing host to a permanent collection of some 70,000 works numbering both ancient and modern art and design from around the world and with an estimated total value of some $ 3.5 billion.
Boasting a continuously changing and perennially excellent roster of exhibitions such as the hugely successful current ‘Vienna: Art & Design’ exhibition encompassing the work of Klimt, Schiele and other notable Austrian artists, the National Gallery of Victoria is nothing short of a revelation for aesthetes and design junkies.
Offering free admission to all but visiting exhibitions, the National Gallery of Victoria is worth visiting for a glimpse of the building alone. With its exterior water wall and Leonard French’s incredible stained glass ceiling — the largest in the world — within the NGV’s Great Hall almost making the sight of the building as gratifying as the sight of the works of art it houses themselves.