Recently re-opened in a stunning architectural creation at the centre of Oslo's waterfront, this museum, which contains all manner of zany contemporary art, is Oslo's latest flagship project and the artistic highlight of the city.
Designed by Renzo Piano and completed in 2012, the museum resides within a wonderful wooden building floating on jetties and rafts, with sail-like roofs that, appropriately, gives the building the look of an old wooden boat. Incorporated into the overall design are canals, parks, a not-quite-yet-complete shopping and restaurant complex and, a favourite with Oslo families in summer, a small pebble beach.
Rather than a collection from a specific historical period, or from a certain artistic movement, the museum concentrates on individual pieces of work or artists who have pushed artistic boundaries. Saying that, the bulk of the original collection is focused on American artists from the 1980s, but today it has become far more wide-ranging in its outlook and the collection hosts pieces by Tom Sachs, Cindy Sherman and Cai Guo-Qiang. Its most famous piece is the gilded ceramic sculpture Michael Jackson and Bubbles, by Jeff Koons.
Guided tours in English taking in the best of the collection run at 5.30pm on Thursdays in July and August. Tours in Norwegian run at 1pm and 2pm every Saturday and Sunday year round.
