The Kröller Müller Museum

The Kröller Müller Museum is in Otterlo, Netherlands within Hoge Veluwe National Park. It’s about a one hour drive from Amsterdam. It is well worth the drive to get out into nature, absorb the fantastic art and appreciate the efforts of Helene Kröller Müller.

WHO WAS HELENE KRÖLLER MÜLLER?

Helene began on her path to art aficionado when her daughter introduced her to H B Bremmer. Bremmer enjoyed giving art appreciation lectures to the ‘upper crust.’ After a while, she became his private student, and he became her advisor. Bremmer was also their agent for purchasing art work from around the world. He continued in this role until 1922 when the international economy made it impossible to go on. The intent was to build a large museum connected to their home. The plans were ready with all drawings and specifications prepared. The was never built. In fact, the couple grew concerned that they could lose their art collection as well as their home.

More than anything they wanted to keep their collection together. As a result, Helene Kröller Müller gave the collection to the Dutch State. They required that the Dutch State build an appropriate museum. The creation of a separate foundation protected their home. That foundation is now the Hoge Veluwe National Park. But the Dutch government was unable to build a large, magnificent museum as well. In 1938 a smaller, cheaper museum opened, with Helene Kröller Müller as it’s the first director.

VAN GOGH GALLERY

The Kröller Müller Museum’s collection consisted of the 11,500 works she purchased. It included 91 paintings and 175 drawings by Vincent Van Gogh, Helene Kröller Müller’s personal favorite artist. At the time, it was the largest private Van Gogh collection in the world. The collection is now the second largest in the world, only bested by the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.

Here’s a link to the history of the museum with many more details.

SCULPTURE GARDEN

The Sculpture Park, added in 1961, is another major collection of the Kröller Müller Museum. Sculptures are around the grounds within the natural setting. Some of them can be hard to see and might take some examination.

Such as this one. Can you see the body of a woman lying under the tree?

A visit to this park could be a day trip all on its own. Besides the museum, round out your visit with a picnic and a tour of the former home of Helene Kröller Müller and Anton Müller, Jachthuis Sint Hubertus. Enjoy this beautiful park and borrow one of the iconic free White Bicycles.