The Menil Collection Reviews

Small, excellent, brilliantly curated. In a Renzo Piano building! The main collection is small but extraordinary, nearly every piece by a big-name artist.The surrealist collection includes an insightful exhibit of indigenous art showcasing possible, probable source material. A wing is dedicated to new works; art and installations by Maya Hattoum, wow. Across the street is an entire building dedicated to Cy Twombley. The Rothko chapel down the street stunned and moved me - art, too, is sacred. Several blocks away is a warehouse converted to an art light installation. Craftsman Cottages across the street have been converted into a bookstore and a cafe. Don't miss it.

Small but exquisite art collection. World class. Probably my favorite museum in Houston.

Look at amazing priceless timeless pieces of art for free....yes please

Very interesting art and the AC was most welcome today. And the price is right - free.

Best of the best museum, such awesome collection of masterpieces, so beautiful

Another breezy Saturday afternoon that I caught the Da Camera young artists performing jazz and chamber music in the main lobby of The Menil Collection. Happens pretty regularly (monthly?) with a variety of classic and new compositions.

My favorite museum in Houston. Great collection, beautiful spaces.

Don't get me wrong, it's a great museum and all but when you get hungry, it's best to pack some lunch to keep in your car because they're barely any places within walking radius to go eat. I really love the contemporary section of the building, I mean contemporary art is my thing haha.

Best art museum in Houston. It is free so everyone can visit

I always enjoy the exhibits here. They have a lovely little gift shop with a good selection of books and gift items.

Love this space, love the collection and the great programming and events!

Private art collection of the likes you have never seen before. The mind blowing thing truly is that it's open to the public with free admission. Just go and please consider donating something to keep it running

The only museum in town with a fuller extent of art and natural lighting.

Beautiful building surrounded by a lovely neighborhood. This place is free and shows a modern take on art. A lot of the pieces you might understand to be avant garde but others might just see them as weird.

Definitely recommend this place.

Wonderful that this collection is free. It's hard to compare it to a museum because they show works collected by the Menil's so it is not the best curating possible due to the fact that the works are limited by the collection. Still a must see when in Houston for art lovers

Loved the architecture, collection and curation. Thank-you!

A place to visit. Excellent facilities and good variety of art for a free entry. Highly recommended to go regularly for a good moment with friends or family.

No matter where I go in the world, this place remains one of my absolute favorite museums. My travels have revealed to me just how spoiled and lucky we are to have somewhere like this within the heart of the city we call home. Inimitable. Unparalleled.

Fantastic display of art in a well organized space. There's lots to see in this hidden gem of Houston. Even though it's located beyond the normal museum district, it is well with a visit.

There is a great wealth of art and history here, and it is worth seeing when you have the opportunity. The architecture is also an experience in itself. However, I don't care for the atmosphere. It's a very cold, sterile feeling, there is always an attendant silently staring at you, and you aren't allowed to speak at full volume. I get that its part of the aesthetic they're going for, but it just feels a little pretentious.

Free entrance. Art works from every period of human history and some of the most famous artists in the world. Any city in the world would be lucky to have this collection and we are lucky enough to have it for free in houston. The building and property are gorgeous as well and make for a great place to just sit and enjoy the atmosphere and beauty of it all.

It's a free art museum that changes its displays every so often. The atmosphere is calm and the art and artifacts are enjoyable to look at.

Beautiful space + well curated art + free = Houston gem + no reason not to go.

A fun experience and a great place to go on a date.

Hard to beat a free museum tucked away in a trendy Houston neighborhood. Spend the afternoon here and at the affiliated museums/spaces. Bring lunch and have a picnic in the park and soak up the beauty of the area.

Amazing collection, amazing family story, amazing grounds for a walk. Parking might be a challenge. Missed Rothko Chapel(renovation)

It's free, parking is typically easy and free, it's the largest and best private collection of art and antiquities I think in the world.a staple for any Houstonian or visitor. Go for 5 minutes or 2 hours, it's great. Love this place and take the kids usually as well or a start to a date on a Saturday afternoon with the wife. Stop in at the front desk to meet an absolute gem of a person and a legend!

One of my favorite museums in Texas. Great collection of arts and great curation

They followed me and a friend of mine the whole time and constantly told us to not go near the artwork, looked at us constantly as if we were committing a crime, and some of the art they have in there could be made by a child. DO NOT COME HERE

Beautiful and very well maintained. Nice place to check out if youre in the area

Stumbled upon this gem and the Surrealist exhibit completely blew my mind. And free. Thank you universe

Nestled in a low-noise area of the town, this destination is gorgeous and relaxing before you reach the door.

New retrospective exhibit is a fun addition to this beautiful museum.

A wonderful collection of all forms of art with very helpful guides and employees. The overall area is lovely!

Some of their guest exhibits are examples of garbage masquerading as art, but the core which was assembled by Dominique is magnificent.

One of best private collections in the country. The Surrealism section is my favorite.

I always love this exhibit, simply one of the best in Houston museum district

Great collections and it s free! Love the exterior design of the building as well!

The staff really cares and this is a great place to take the kids. The new exhibits are awesome!

I really enjoyed my time here. Their collection is very nice. The area around the building is very green and many people were sitting and enjoying the nice weather. I'd love to come back soon

Very quite and have exquisite art pieces as well as contemporary

Love the renovations. Security was a bit too much over my shoulder... Felt kinda off-putting... But meh

Is a museum of first level, its architecture is a reason for visit, its art collection is always surprising even if it is a permanent collection, the curatorship is very professional. There are always reasons to return. I love it.

Great art, but if you are Mexican or African American they follow you as if you were going to steal a painting. I've gone through that personally.

Very nice collection, it's great to spend an afternoon to visit the place.

It said it was open till 7pm, I drove from Louisiana to here. I was here at 6:40, they had closed at 5pm for a special event... No mentioning of it online or on front door. Very disappointing.

Insulting to me- you can't hang a carpet on the wall and call it art lol... but I guess art is whatever you can get a person to stare at. And the staff are like Nazi prison guards.

Fantastic place, and it's free! A great mix of cultural & ethnic artefacts mixed with really good modern art by great artists.

A hidden gem of a gallery, not as widely known of but it should be. Well worth a quiet afternoon with art, and it's free so you don't have an excuse.

Racially profiled guard . I was the only Mexican person in one of the exhibits and was being followed by an older white lady. Every time I went to a different piece, she ran after me like I was going to destroy something. She did not follow anyone else. My friend said that once we left, the guard was peeking out the entrance to see me walk away. After that, I felt extremely uncomfortable and didn t want to be there anymore. Every person should be treated with the same amount of security. Will not be going again.

Outstanding private museum. Beautiful painting and artifact .The best was seeing George Washington in drag. Circa 1957

Nice building but it felt like there was more security then visitors. I just wanted to take a picture of the roof (which is really cool) and got approached by two security people, after that I felt like I was being followed and watched by every single one of them. Will not go back.

No pictures allowed. And smaller than I anticipated. No info about the pieces either.

Stunning, of course. Free street parking is a plus! Beautifully curated displays, a wonderful way to spend a couple of hours during an afternoon. Thank you to the contributors and donors that make it possible to keep this facility free for everybody!

One of the best museums of Houston. Go, it's free and there is always something new to see.

Nice interesting collection... need to spend time looking around

Dude. It's free.

IT'S FREE.

Even if you're not a big history guy, or a big modern art guy, it's freeeeee. There's sure to be one or two things here that you like, or that make you think, or that inspire some emotion of some kind. For the entry fee of $0, it's totally worth.

For me? I loved the collection. Lots of interesting stuff, both modern and antique. The surrealist pieces were particularly fascinating.

One of my favorite Houston museum. The building is beautiful inside and out . The neighborhood is very relaxing and peaceful.

It was very nice. We didn't have time to see it in it's entirety, so we will be returning. I highly recommend visiting The Menil Collection. My 20 y/o daughter and I are really impressed with the collection, the architectural design of the building and the open, well manicured grounds.

I love coming here. On the nicer days it's always relaxing to hang out in the park next door. And on the hotter/wetter days in Houston, the exhibits inside are always beautiful. Highly recommend!