Van Gogh to Mondrian: Modern Art from the Kro'ller-Mu'ller Museum

.... about the Kröller-Müller Musem: Go There! Go soon! Don't even consider another trip, or a first trip, to the Netherlands without including the Kröller-Müller Museum. This book contains page after page of reasons why; it's one of the finest collections of 20th C painting and sculpture anywhere. In fact, its collection of paintings by Vincent van Gogh is at least as good as that of the always-overcrowded van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. But the K-M is seldom uncomfortably crowded, and it displays its collection with a gentle serenity that few museums approach. The K-M is near the small town of Otterloo, in Gelderland in the wooded interior of the Netherlands. Its isolation is part of its glory. The museum is surrounded by a sculpture park of many acres, similar to the Storm King sculpture park near West Point in New York State. Walking in the sculpture park in autumn is a sublime pleasure; the huge oaks turn a beautiful ember-amber color. But then, around the sculpture park is a vast nature preserve, a once-upon-a-time game park with miles of hiking and biking trails. On the north border of this 'National Park', you'll see a massive hunting lodge, built around 1900. There are two entrances to the Park, on the west and east sides. You can drive in, for a fee, but far wiser is to park in the lot outside and ride one of the free 'white' bikes. It's a 15-20 minute ride to the museum. Riding around the Park is worth a whole day, even during a short vacation visit. The museum itself was constructed in the 1930s, but it looks as modern and fresh as if it had been built last year. It's a hymn to windows, a sonata of natural light. Walking through the collection, one can always take a 'breather' from human expression by glancing out the large windows at the trees and flowers. In fact, you can judge whether a piece of art is really powerful by whether it can hold your gaze in competition with nature outside the glass. The history of the collection, and how it survived the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, is also interesting, but you can learn it from the internet. Otterloo offers lots of hotel and B & B choices, and a plethora of restaurants specializing in "game" dishes. It's quite easy to get to Otterloo from Utrecht, which is an appealing city in itself. There's another book available here in the 'zoo, specifically describing the sculpture collection, but it's more expensive.