From the curation of failures to bad art good ol’ erotica, here’s a look at seven museums around the world that you probably didn’t know existed.
The Louvre in Paris, the Uffizi in Florence, the Vatican Museums in Rome all showcase invaluable artworks. People from all over the world are willing to wait in line for hours at any of these to admire their collections at least once in their lives.
However, there are also other museums that, although smaller, lesser known and perhaps even a bit odd, merit attention. So here are seven unusual museums that you probably have never heard of, that are worth a detour on your next trip.
1.Museum of Failure in Helsingborg, Sweden
Failure does not necessarily have to be seen as negative: every failure leads to a lesson, and the Museum of Failure in is proof of this. It collects failed inventions that have contributed to development and innovation. Among the objects on display, the Apple’s Newton MessagePad. This iPhone forerunner was used for sending faxes and messages but never took off because writing something understandable proved a challenge. Also on display are Heinz’s green and purple ketchup experiment as well as a board game similar to Monopoly created by current U.S. President Donald Trump. Curator Dr. Samuel West felt that success stories are boring, frustrating, and at the end of the day, incredibly similar to each other. However, everyone can learn from the failures of others, so he opened this museum.
2. Museum of Pizza in New York
There are those who argue that the most important things in a person’s life are not actually tangible: love, friendship and health. This is true, yes…but then there is the mother of all food: pizza! Whether frozen, gourmet or homemade, every pizza incarnation provides comfort and satisfaction in pretty much every time zone. Pizza is capable of producing as much ecstasy as viewing Van Gogh’s paintings or standing in the Sistine Chapel. Pizza is, in fact, an art, and that is why, finally, it will have its own dedicated museum, a traveling museum to be precise that will open in New York on 13 October 2018. From there, it will travel around the world, showcasing work from artists who have used pizza as a muse. There will also be a pizza cave, pizza fun house, pizza beach, interactive installations to discover all of pizza’s secrets and, of course, a pizzeria.
3. Museum of Broken Relationships in Zagreb, Croatia and Los Angeles
Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all, wrote Alfred Lord Tennyson. However, that’s much easier said than believed. The end of any sentimental relationship leaves, at best, emptiness and loneliness, and at worst anger and despair. But as it is always said, focusing on oneself and channeling all negative energies and feelings into something constructive is crucial for healing. Perhaps the founders of the Museum of Broken Relationships in Zagreb and Los Angeles were left with a heavy dose of bad feelings to digest from past relationships? The museum is thought of as a constantly expanding body of tearjerker stories, gifts and relics from the ghosts of love past. Anyone can contribute to the collection, provided they have objects from past relationships that they are willing to part with.
4. Erotica Museum, Barcelona
Christian Grey with his “games room” is a mere beginner. The Erotica Museum in Barcelona hosts a collection of 800 pieces that span the Upper Paleolithic era to the present day. Pass through sections dedicated to fetishes, the Kama Sutra and the Ananga Ranga for a pornographic video collection and an “Erotic Garden”.
5. Subacuático de Arte Museum (Underwater Museum of Art) in Mexico
Everything is more beautiful, magical and fascinating underwater, and the Subacuático de Arte Museum is special. In the waters surrounding Cancun, Punta Nuzuc and Islas Mujeres are more than 500 statues of life-size humans interacting with the inhabitants of a coral reef. Intrepid travelers can visit this fantastic underwater museum armed with mask, fins, cylinders or snorkel, while who prefer to stay try can board a glass-bottomed boat.
6. Museum of Bad Art, in Dedham, Massachusetts
The world is full of artists, some self-styled, and all are convinced that the world cannot do without their art. More often than not, this is not the case, and many of these artists would do better by taking up another hobby. However, the art world has room for everyone, even for some of the less compelling artworks out there thanks to the Museum of Bad Art. The curators took the trouble to collect “the best” of the bad and exhibit them.
7. Museum of Menstruation
Once a facility in Maryland, the Museum of Menstruation is now an online museum that explains everything you need to know about menstruation. With content updated regularly, readers can learn about taboos that unfortunately are still relevant, various menstruation products and how the cycle is communicated by media and advertising.