The Menil Collection Review

Love exhibitions here, the building and territory around

Our favorite museaun in Houston. Just enough of everything to keep you entertained.

One of the best collection of Surrealist art. Period. Great gallery spaces makes it a absolutely necessary part of any trip to Houston.

Houston has an underappreciated art scene. Check this place out when you have time. It'll be worth it.

Excellent unique museum with a wide variety of art, including an excellent Surrealist collection and a museum building devoted to painter Cy Twombley. A beautiful and relaxing experiance. This is a world class museum and my favorite site in Houston. It reflects the personal collecting philosophy of the founders of the museum.

A fun collection, some interactive. I will be going back to see the dissection machine. It apparently works at 12:15 each Saturday for 2 minutes.

The main building is now closed for floor repairs until the fall of 2018.

It is obscene that such a wonderful museum is tucked away in Montrose, but the location adds to the experience.

The Menil Collection is closed through the summer 2018 which is a shame. However the chapels are open and are interesting places. Wonderful park for a nice picnic.

Loved this place!! I took my boyfriend and some friends, they dislike art or anything having to do with "culture" with a fiery passion. As in they just find it boring, but they enjoyed the collection, the building, and the surrounding area so much that they asked if I would take them again.

Hidden jewel of Houston. You must go see all the locations and exhibits..

Free and friendly. The park right next to it is perfect for picnics

Small but unique collections in Houston. The location and environment is also tranquil and peaceful.

Interesting collection of art (surrealism, tribal, modern, etc). The building and park are amazing. Always free. Be sure to check out the Rothko chapel and nearby photo gallery next door. There is also a bookstore and cafe.

Are you really looking at a review for an art gallery?

An amazing collection! It is one of those sights to see in Houston. From surrealism to contemporary and before time, makes you see the human spirit of communication thru art from the lenses of this talented artists!

Cool free place to visit unfortunately I was greeted very coldly and felt unwelcome

Simple but powerful collections, rotating exhibits, and peaceful. The Menil Collection is a wonderfully small treasure, open free to the public, that's worth a visit.

The Menil is an art gallery that typically hold works from surrealism and abstract to pop-art with many famous artists' work such as Picasso, Magritte, Matisse, Warhol, and many more. They also have a rotating exhibition area that varies throughout the year. The gallery is not big by any means and one can finish viewing the gallery in less than 15 minutes if you quickly move throughout the collections. But that's not why people come to view art galleries by length but by content and by all means Menil has a collection worth analyzing. Overall, The Menil Collection is worth a visit especially if you're looking for a less attended, quieter attraction in Houston. Didn't I mention before that it's free to the public?

Great place. Great customer service. Highly recommended!

Always exciting to see the wonderful art and history here

Wonderful museum, free to the public, great collection of surrealist works. One of my favorite places in Houston.

Leaning towards modern and abstract with a few classical pieces, the museum is spare, sometimes a bit cold, and eclectic.

Quite a wide variety of art. I really enjoyed it. It's crazy to imagine how some of the artifacts lasted for thousands of years. Made me think about the people that created the pieces. What were the like? Why did they make this piece?

There is no entrance fee. Please help keep it that way by making a donation.

Always new and exciting pieces of art and artifacts and the free admission is a great reason to visit The Menil! The upscale restaurant is very convenient for a small bite

An amazing collection, and frequently rotated...plus temporary exhibits as well. I've visited many times, and I see something new every time. If you're a fan of Surrealism, you can't miss it. They have some really great Max Ernst and Rene Magritte paintings. And a whole lot more, of course! And there is no entrance fee. It's also only a couple of blocks from the Rothko Chapel, the Byzantine Fresco Chapel, and the Cy Twombly Gallery...all of which are also free. Totally worth a visit!

please disregard google schedule listed above - main building is closed till September 22 2018

Really beautiful and expansive collections! There are 5 separate exhibits to look at, though you cannot take pictures of the art that is inside the closed exhibits.

Beautiful collection, very peaceful. Wonderful lawn to enjoy. Also the bistro is delicious.

Great free museum with several different styles of art. Not all of it was my style but when it's free who cares. The buildings themselves are awesome although three of them were closed when I visited. Enjoy some awesome art.

So beautiful! The atmosphere was incredible, the pieces were aesthetic, and it was amazingly relaxing!

How can you go wrong with The Menil Collection? Perfect spot near by for picnics, wonderful book shop across the street, and obviously the Menil.

I enjoyed the art realm at this venue. They have the long hallway walk and that real art displayed.

Interesting collections to stop over and check out. Free but donations are encouraged.

Beautiful modern and contemporary art pieces plus ancient sculptures and painting from europe and africa. Great works of Leger, Ernst, Pollock and Magritte. An audioguide or at least some explanations on the walls would make the exhibition more complete and meaningful. Visitors should be allowed to take pics. I do not understand how the museum fundation/staff couldn't realise the value that hundreds of pics of the museum art posted on social media would add. It's free advertising...

Very interesting, friendly staff, very laid back. Had a great time.

Nice atmosphere especially for a date. Great service and food.

This place is AMAZING, however the thing that made my experience just absolutely awful was being profiled and literally followed around the museum. I was with two of my friends admiring the art and the staff clearly "marked" us right when we got into the museum! They stared at us while we looked at pieces and stepped closer to us when we got closer to them. Before we left we visited one more room that was unsupervised and they followed us into the room! The woman clearly signaled she was watching us to another staff member and we when left while there were still other people in the room she left with us! The only reason she left is because we said out loud we were leaving! I never experienced this at any other museum I mean did that expect us to try to run away with these massive pieces of art? I was just offended and I plan on never visiting this museum again, seriously upset with their prejudice and out right unfair treatment to my privacy.

This is a fantastic museum in the heart of Houston. We are blessed to have this in our vicinity.

Houston has so much culture it is surprising! I recommend taking a peak of this museum if you are only in town for a few days. Pieces you had no idea call Houston home. Thank you to the city and all those that saw a future in Houston s culture.

I loved this museum..i really really loved the Picasso exhibit that they had.

this is my favorite place in h town. but sadly this week they cut down my favorite tree

This was my first visit, highly recommended to me. This was a museum that has so much culture, I have lived in Houston all my life and never knew we had such a gem. I will be returning with my children for another culture filled experience!

This is one of my favorites spaces in Houston! Great exhibitions and private collections open to the public, plus the outside space is wonderful for picnics!

Excellent collection of all the significant art movements.

You shouldn't miss this place if you're nearby. And check out the scene on the grounds on nice days.

One of Houston's finest museums, always free and there's always someone or four someones to watch over you. They have the most annoying docents but a collection of fine art that can't be rivaled. I rarely go inside these days as it's hard to enjoy the art with so many eyes on you. I prefer to spend an afternoon hanging out in their green space across the street from the main museum.

Great eclectic Art Collection. Beautiful set up. Great neighborhood to enjoy a day of art and sunshine.

Free admission and parking. Note that there are 4 buildings. Plan on 2 hours. The main building has several hundred pieces from all over the world, through the ages, multiple styles, and a great variety of mediums. There are a fair amount of archeological/ historical/ cultural objects (that is, not just paintings hanging on walls). The pieces are labeled, but no explanation/ interpretations: plan on 2 hours. One building is empty except for 2 paintings (2 minutes), 1 has a single piece (2 minutes), 1 has about 20 pieces from the same artist (5 minutes).

A nicely organized and cool little free art gallery.

For the art lover
Classic modern art Francis Bacon. Mark Rothko. Must see.

Cute little gallery, donation based. Lots of people hanging out outside on the grass chilling out. Cute little date spot in down town!

The art was absolutely beautiful!!! The staff is extremely friendly. Had a lot of fun going to eat of the buildings! Definitely looking forward to coming back!

I love coming here, then to the park, the chapel and the other two separate installations. All free! Great for college student like me.

Although I wasn't too much a fan of the works inside the collection, the space was beautiful and the staff was awesome

A remarkably well rounded permanent art exhibition, free to the public.

Great collection everytime. And a mix of periods of art, antiquities, and artifacts. You could spend an hour or the whole day here!

Great art in rotation. I specially like the surrealist gallery.

Quiet little place to take a date or clear your mind. The park just outside is always peaceful and quaint, and makes you feel like a kid again.

Parking used to be better before they tried to win over the bread and circus crowd but it's free so who cares.

*Some of the security staff needs to lighten up and realize they're not at a bank

This museum architect is blending the nature light and green garden with its collections very well. The neighborhood house is also blended very well with this museum. They change collection display often so I always feel fresh each time visit it. During summer and fall, they often have live performance in the entrance or the front lawn. Check their calendar before you go. After two hours walking, you may recharge in the cafe next to the museum and enjoy their fresh healthy food.

Try it on Sunday. Good place to enjoy art and find peace. Well maintained and FREE!

Many different inspirational art. You could spend hours and still not see the entire collection. If in the area, drop in. They would love to see you.

Couldn't stay to see all.collections. I love the mentality of the Menil family and what their collections mean in the context of social justice and cultural harmonies. Went to the Rothko Chapel nearby which they financed. Don't miss that! Powerful expetience.

You shouldn't miss this place if you're nearby. And check out the scene on the grounds on nice days.

What a gem! I love surrealist art and can't believe this impeccably curated collection is in my backyard! They do a great job of creating a different mood in each of the different wings. I can't wait to go back.

Amazing art collection - beautiful architecture. Always free.

Wonderful place, always something new. One of my favorite places to go in the city

Beautiful art, friendly staff and nice green spaces.