9 Striking Modern Museums in Europe (That Aren’t Tate Modern, the Centre Pompidou, or Guggenheim Bilbao)

Even if you have only a modicum of interest in modern art and architecture, you’d probably still visit the Tate Modern while you’re in London, the Centre Pompidou when in Paris, and the Guggenheim Bilbao (which single-handedly made the Spanish port city a tourist destination) when in Bilbao. Those iconic institutions are often at the top of tourists’ to-do lists—and with good reason. But for those with perhaps a keener interest in the subject, some of the biggest marquee names in architecture have designed a multitude of stunning yet relatively lesser-known modern European museums. Besides offering dazzling exhibition spaces, many of these museums have another thing in common: They are the centerpieces of urban renewal projects—on top of old shipyards, blighted neighborhoods, abandoned industrial areas—in numerous cities across the EU, breathing life and art into formerly neglected neighborhoods. A visit to any of these is guaranteed to surprise and delight. Click through the slideshow below to discover some of the best modern museums in Europe.