National Galleries of Scotland: Modern One

My personal highlight was the cafe with amazing Christmas flavored lattes and cake. The current exhibition (November 2024) didn’t fully do it for me, but at least the entry was free.

As it says.... Modern, so some wonderful pieces, some interesting to view and others just fun. Hard to fault a free art gallery that has a sense of fun. Just wished there were a few more exhibits, but overall worth a trip if you enjoy a more modern take on art

Really great place! It’s for free and u can see artist like Picasso or Munch! Wow

Fantastic free gallery that is definitely worth checking out in Edinburgh. 🎨 At the moment they're still renovating some parts of the building for modern 2. But still a lot of exhibits here. Love the sculptures outside the building. There's a nice range of experimental paintings and sculptures inside the museum. A nice gift shop and easy to navigate. Staff are all friendly! 👏

Free admission to the eclectic collection of this gallery with a helpful staff and a sensible curatorial work. Thoroughly enjoyed my visit, wish there was more to see!

Do Ho Suh's exhibition was fascinating. Beautiful and pains-taking work. The galleries permanent works too were high quality. Oh and entry is free!

Came for the Doho Suh show and saw the permanent collection, too. The modern art galleries are nice because they're a bit away from the center of town, which left them leas crowded for our visit. Very cool visiting shows and a solid permanent collection with sculpture and earthworks on the grounds.

This museum should be up there in the list of top places to visit in Edinburgh. The exhibition that was hosted there was really something and really blew my mind. In addition, the reception guys were really welcoming to everyone and really helpful too! Will come back again!! ❤️

We recently made our way over to the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art after my son recommended it to us. I love all things art and free art is even better! The building we walked into was impressive itself but they were in the middle of changing exhibits upstairs so we were limited to the main floor. After being a little disappointed at the lack of art on display, we learned we were in Modern Two and there was a whole other building across the street - Modern One! It was nearly closing time so we quickly made our way over there. We were very happy to see the variety and quantity of works on display! I loved seeing an Edvard Munch lithograph, a colorful David Hockney acrylic, a Picasso - and many more interesting works by new-to-me artists! I hope to get back here again when I have more time to explore!

fantastic collection. especially the scottish landscape artists. FREE! i was really impressed. so many great artists. takes hours to go through. highly recommend if you are visiting edinburgh

I love these galleries, every piece is fascinating and beautiful and sometimes a bit weird. The Andy Warhol expedition was everything I hoped it would be and highly recommend you go see very soon before it's gone. Loved also seeing some Joan Miro art displayed. The replica of the Eduardo studio was fascinating, so much to see and comment on but I can't share it all here. Wonderful gallery, a must see in my opinion.

I've been going back and forth on my rating for the Gallery of Modern Art... here's why: I live reasonably close to this space... a quick fifteen-minute walk means that I can stroll the grounds on a nice day, plunk down and grab a cup of coffee or wander through to see what's new. Though I'm not sure of their wifi situation, I can see this gallery and its cafes fast becoming a permanent staple in my summer when I need an out of the home office day. The shop, though small, holds some interesting little treasures and their illustration library gives me bookworm goals. BUT... as a destination gallery, I'm not sure it holds up to its rivals in town. If you're traveling further than my little walk, I could see this gallery being a bit of a disappointment as it's quite small. The grounds are worth the look (especially if you can time it in and around sunset) and the place is well curated... just sparse. I also find it a bit frustrating that you often lose an entire floor to a ticketed exhibition. I understand the need for occasional ticketed events, but it would be nice to have their marketing material reflect that before arriving. So take this place with a grain of salt. If you have 48 hours in Edinburgh, it wouldn't make it on my "must do" list but if you've got more time to explore or are lucky enough to call the city home, it's worth a mini adventure to see.

Always the perfect location for a bit of culture and art. I've spent my Sunday at the surrealist exhibition in G2. 13 rooms of surrealism was a bit much... There's only so much art even my brain can take in! My favourite part was the Miro and Dali rooms- their art work is out of this world and they are 2 of my favourite painters. It was really interesting to read the history of surrealism and the the collectors of this style of artwork over the years. For only £10 a ticket id say you get a whole lotta art for your money. Of course their was time for a cheeky wee scone and a cuppa- the best scones btw! I wish it handy rained so there was time to wander round the gardens, but there's always a next time. I'm so greatful that we have such a fantastic gallery at our door step

We went there recently to see the latest exhibition called witches and wicked bodies. Sadly this exhibition will come to an end this week. There were paintings hanging in four rooms, all about the ugliness and sexuality of witches from it's beginnings in the 1500 to its end. If there ever was an end! The contents of the paintings vary. You can see different styles of pencil or brush work. Stories of Faust and Walburgies Nacht came to life. Witches riding their brooms through the darkest of nights. But there were also paintings of beauty like Vivienne, Melancholy and Medusa, only to mention a few. The galleries of modern art two is housed in an amazing building and surroundings. Can't wait for the next exhibition to arrive.

The Modern Art Galleries is made up of the Dean Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art, located in two separate buildings across the road from one another. The Dean Gallery is smaller and has some interesting pieces. I was rather impressed by the big metal roboty thing which stood two stories tall. I checked the website for this, because there is not a chance I would remember it and I want to be helpful, so the Dean Gallery features Dada and Surrealism. I couldn't tell you what that is, just that I enjoyed this nicely kept, quiet gallery. The Gallery of Modern Art is, well modern art. So I go in and think, WTF this is a room with some junk in it. Whereas someone else goes in and says "Aha! A masterpiece!" There were many pieces where I thought, HUH? Really? That is art? But then there was some fantastic pieces with so much thought and effort put into them. One of the exhibits is a wall where this guy has added the name of every single person he has ever met to. It's not a painting but I thought it was pretty fun. This gallery is a mix of the odd and the outstandingly good and bad modern art. Great way to spend an afternoon because it is quite entertaining and always stirs up that debate of "What is art?" Oh and it is free.

Love the cafe in Modern Two. Paolozzi's giant metal Vulcan is very inspiring. Great cup of tea. They do it right. Many gluten free vegan cakes. Soup and sandwich for lunch is always good. They've gluten free breads too. Very nice professional staff. Beautiful!

A gallery housed in two separate buildings (about a 5 minute walk from each other, on opposing sides of the same street) - one of them very much worth visiting (Modern I), the other one - well, not so much. "Modern I" features the "traditional" modern art, which means: mostly works from the early to mid-20th century. So, not actually very modern at all. Which is a good thing, if you love figurative painting and not-so-abstract abstract painting - or, in short: *real* art. Which is why you should visit this place first. It has much more to offer - both qualitatively and quantitatively - and scores much lower on the pretentiousness scale. There are also temporary exhibitions (a major one on the late works of Roy Lichtenstein when I was visiting in early July). But the permanent exhibition is mighty impressive in itself (see my photos). And you can take photos of ALL pictures and sculptures. Ain't that nice?! Expect to spend around 1.5 hours there. And then there's "Modern II" across the street. There's always a temp exhibition for which you'll have to pay an amount of money that's not really proportionate to the quality of said temporary exhibit (which is true of *all* major UK galleries, from Tate Britain, Tate Modern to Manchester etc). See, I caught the pretentiousness bug there. I could just have said: It's not worth the money. Sounds harsh, but there it is. Other than that, there's a rather tiny permanent display of some works which could have easily been shown in "Modern I" (say, Picasso, Dali, etc) - just 2 rooms, and a café and a shop. 25-30 minutes max for the permanent display. The walk from city centre is about 30 minutes (off George or Princes Street), which is just fine when it's not raining. The permanent galleries are always free of charge. Since there are attractive parks and installations on either side, you may also feel tempted to just relax there for a while. So, 5 stars for Modern I, 3 for Modern II. Makes 4.

I've got to preface my review with the disclaimer that I, like 99% of people on earth, don't know a god damn thing about modern art. Despite my intellectual handicap, the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art makes for a really nice afternoon out. And, like all public museums and galleries in the UK, they are completely free to enter, although entry to some temporary exhibits can sometimes cost money. It's nestled in a nice, leafy area of Edinburgh that is pleasant to walk to. If you're a visitor to Edinburgh, you can walk there from the western end of Princes street in probably ten or fifteen minutes if you know where you're going, and I definitely recommend doing so if the weather is nice. The gallery is actually two separate buildings on either side of a road. Building number 1 is the larger and has a cool bit of landscaping in the front garden. Building 2 has a more formal front lawn, but (in my opinion) a more attractive building. They're both lovely to look at, walk around and take pictures of and are great examples of late-Georgian neo-classical architecture, if you're into that sort of thing. I went to a temporary Escher exhibition in building 1, which was just perfectly curated and presented. A lot of time, thought and skill had gone into arranging the layout of the collection and putting together of the information. The permanent collection of both buildings is... interesting? It's modern art. There are works from a few big names and some stuff that is quite amusing to look at, even to lay idiots like me. It can be quite fatiguing, though, so I recommend just breezing through and admiring the buildings as much as the contents if you're not that into it.

Been here before and would say its worth a visit as the grounds are interesting (sculptures, logos - "everything will be alright" and "there will be no miracles here"??, and hit and miss exhibitions). Last time we went the content was able female sexuality, and this time it was about Scottish Women. There are usually some interesting displays inside but we perused the grounds and it was nice to see a bunch of kids on a field trip running up the swirly mound!

The Scottish Gallery of Modern Art is a bit more out of the way than the other arty-type places in Edinburgh, which cluster around Princes Street. That said, it's worth the walk. Made up of two separate buildings which tend to house separate exhibitions (one free, one paid (roughly £6-9) for the most part) the gallery is also surrounded by permanent pieces in the gardens which are quite striking. The artists on show are usually well known and the exhibitions are quite good. Most recently we went to the Escher exhibit and were suitably in awe! The gallery also houses a cafe which I've never sat in but it seems worth it to have a coffee next to a humungous sculpture which takes up two floors. Additionally, there's a permanent installation from the life of Eduardo Paolozzi which is very impressive! A definite good day out.

This is quite frankly one of the finest modern art museums I've ever seen in my life. Housed in an imposing neo-classical building, which was designed by William Burn in 1825, it moved to this site on Belford Road in 1984. Right now they are celebrating their 50th anniversary, so I recommend you don't miss this museum. They've currently rehung a lot of their works and they're currently featuring "What You See is Where You're At". I'm not much of an art critic, but I did enjoy the "Super Realism" exhibit, which showed how Pop Art renewed interest in photographic realism, and American popular culture. But I think I enjoyed the Young Scottish Painter exhibit, which over the next several months will showcase three emerging Scottish painters: Alex Dordoy, Sophie Mackfall and Alan Stanners. It's a pleasure to discover the works of new artists. While we have an outstanding art museum in my native Pittsburgh, the Carnegie, I often wish we had something a little more dedicated to modern and contemporary art. The building grounds here are simply gorgeous! The layout of the building is very logical. And the facility itself is simply stunning.

I've always found the Museum of Modern Art to be fairly badly used, in that they choose some rather poor exhibitions to stage there. Last time I went it was the Edward Munch exhibition, which largely consisted of entire rooms holding the same image (predominantly the Scream) in a variety of different colour prints and not many (if any at all) original and finished pieces of art. I was more interested in the Gallery's more permanent exhibits, such as the giant metallic creature in the cafeteria. Exhibits tend to price in the range of £7-10, which, depending on the exhibition can seem reasonable or not, especially considering the more substantial National and Portrait Galleries are free. It's a shame because the venue is nice, set in some lovely surrounding grounds and just a little out of town. Just wish they would up the ante a little. Until a decent exhibition comes along, I'd recommend the Portrait Gallery over this.

I'm not an art enthusiast, and modern art leaves something to be desired for me. Sometimes, a piece will catch my eye but overall, I just tend to stagger around exhibits in a bewildered fashion and hope that something sparks a debate. There is a sign outside "Everything will be alright". I like that. I also liked the Edvard Munch and Jeff Koons exhibits although I will be honest, I preferred the works in the Dean Gallery, at the time showing an exhibit on August Sander, a rather impressive early 20th century portrait photographer. The grounds are, as the other reviews point out, are glorious, and the landform, although closed off to access when we visited, still remain a stunning sight. If you have any interest in art at all, you will probably visit at some point, and I don't think you will be disappointed if you do.

This is a very picturesquely situated gallery indeed, with the gardens spread out in front of it, and the Dean Gallery opposite, which is also a fantastic piece of classic architecture to feast your arty eyes on. The Neoclassical Gallery of Modern Art is just as good as the Dean, and holds Scotland's national collection of modern art. I've always had really mixed feelings about modern art. I know there are too many artists and too many modern art styles to generalise, but I think it just depends what you view as art, and I see proper art as something that took skill to produce. Looking at a small blue paint dot in the middle of a newspaper that's folded in half and stuck on a wall does nothing for me, however I do appreciate Picasso, Matisse, and Peter Howson, and these are just a few of the great artists you can see at the gallery. The gallery also hosts a series of high profile temporary exhibitions, so if you're in the area, it's pretty likely you'll enjoy one of the exhibitions showing at either the Dean or the Gallery of Modern Art.

The Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art Two certainly worth a visit. The gallery, its architecture, the manicured gardens and sculptures, the Escher inspired maze, the magic man-sized cubical mirror, the café & gift shop... Not my first time there as I attended several exhibitions (a remarkable curated Rene Magritte one, I recall). This time visit was prompted by one of my favs, Maurits Cornelis Escher, top-of-the-class graphic artist of all times!!! His uber-famous impossible constructions & compositions as Sky & Water, Reptiles, Ascending Descending and Relativity are waiting for you... Modern Two also houses a replica of Leither Eduardo Paolozzi's Studio, the "Surrealism and the Marvellous" with works of Dalí, Magritte, Ernst and many more. Highly recommended for art lovers and aestheticians!!!

On a warm summer's day, I like nothing better than to take a walk over to the Gallery of Modern Art. It is situated about twenty minutes walk away from Princes Street, but it is a world apart from the busy city centre. The walk takes you through the picturesque Dean Village and by the water of Leith, all very leafy, green and calming. The Gallery itself is housed in a neo classical building set in beautiful grounds (which also feature a few interesting pieces, there's a fabulous Henry Moore sculpture outside to the left of the main entrance). Entrance is free, although there is sometimes a small charge for visiting exhibitions, I don't mind paying as they are always well-curated . The Gallery's shop sells postcards, books and other art related odds and ends (I am currently coveting a Pantone mug, geek!), it's not too expensive and a good place to pick up quirky gifts Just over the road is the Dean Gallery, which also houses modern art, although it specialises in Dada and surreal pieces (Magritte, Dali etc), I implore you to check it out as well. The GMA provides a wonderful home for some amazing artworks and the café serves lovely food and tasty cakes too. Perfect.

This place has my heart. Fact. I used to study History of Art when I was in 1st and 2nd year, and every Friday we would go around the museums. When we were in the Modern Art Gallery, I was positively giddy! The second you pull up to this gallery you understand why. The gardens, designed by Capability Brown I'll have you know, are very very cool and modern. It's a bit like the Tellytubby's opening sequence. The gallery itself is amazing. It's such a lovely lovely day out, I can't tell you enough how great it is. I know it's a but far out of the city, but there is a free bus that leaves from the Mound that comes here regularly! Brilliant! It's a green bus with paintings on it - depicting whichever exhibition is on at the gallery. It's worth going just to look around the garden. The Dean gallery is brilliant too! I love it, and so will you

I have to say, I came here because I promised that I would meet my sister here on one of her college trips to several art galleries across the UK. Firstly, although I know that there are several bus shuttle services that go just to the galleries, I actually drove there in my car and it was a nightmare to find - no sign posts at all. Anyway, one problem aside, the gallery is actually rather stunning - even my sister who is really into her art was blown away by this place. Using here as a make shift tour guide I wandered around this place with my jaw dropped, its quite spectacular. A great place to come visit, if you can find it.

I like going to Modern Art museums, but the National Gallery in Edinburgh somewhat disappoints me unfortunately. The art collection is very limited, when compared to those in the MoMa, Guggenheim, Lisbon and other places. The sheer space is vast - there are two separate buildings housing the art. The garden space is magnificent, and the outdoor room cafe is definitely worth a check. I spent about an hour or so seeing their permanent collections. A nice part is the gift shop as it has some pretty good stuff there. Admission is free. If you like to spent a couple of hours on a cloudy day, this may worth a quick look. Also, the Lothian bus line does not reach there, so your £3.50 all day bus pass will not get you over. There is another bus line that will get there, but it runs every hour so public transportation is not superb. However, it is a fairly quick, nice walk from the castle (about 15 mins), and not bad if you want to check out the houses and Scottish architecture.

Having spoken to Sandra (our B&B host) she suggested we head along the road and pick up The Water of Leith Walkway which takes you about a mile or so along the river to the back entrance of the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art. It was such a lovely walk through beautiful woodland scenery, you also come across a rather grand nymph-type Victorian mineral well, and through the quaint Dean Village. We where amazed at how tranquil it all was considering it was in the centre of a city! Definitely a break from the hustle and bustle. The gallery itself is set in wonderful grounds; the huge modern pond at the front both contradicts the traditional grand build while leading you into the modern spaces of the gallery. We spent most of our time wandering around the Richard Long exhibition. It was well executed covering work from the 60s up to new works created especially for the exhibition, so much so a couple of them where painted directly onto the gallery walls! We then jumped on the free shuttle bus which runs every hour between all the national galleries back into the heart of the city, intending to go to the Portrait Gallery. We headed in before deciding that nahactually we've done the culture now it's time to shop! Still the free shuttle bus came in handy!

One of my favourite places to disappear off to in Edinburgh. The National Gallery of Modern Art is a little outside the city in leafy Dean Village but is worth a jaunt - combine it with a wander along the Waters of Leith walkway, accessible and signposted from Haymarket station or take the free bus from the Waverley Bridge/Mound or Queen Street galleries. The Gallery (and the dean gallery over the road) specialise in modern art & have great permanent and temporary exhibitions which,+ the buildings and amazing gardens are great in which to to gather ones thoughts Ess

In my opinion the cafes at the Gallery of Modern Art, Dean Gallery and Portrait Gallery are the best in Edinburgh, bar none. This cafe is heaving at lunchtime, which follows on from the morning tea and scone shift, so it can be tricky to get a table to yourself! The cafe comes into its own in the Summer when you can spill out on the patio and take in the beautiful walled garden stunning!!! The large selection of homemade food is amazing with delicious main dishes accompanied by tasty and imaginative salads, and baking to die for! The ultimate brownie is a must!

One of the main art galleries in Edinburgh it hosts a range of major exhibitions. It is a great space to view work, good light and atmosphere. There is a shop filled with great artists books, gifts and general stuff. There is also a cafe which is relaxing and chilled out. It serves both food and drink, although it's not the cheapest place in town! It is located slightly out from the central shopping area but there are great opportunities in terms of walking in the area such as along the very picturesque water of Leith. If you have planty of time, this is a great day out.

Smaller then I hoped. And really only highlights one artist upstairs and has changing exhibitions down stairs. I like a bit more diversity in my museum experience... I've heard about some great modern artist that are from Glasgow... so where is their work?

Fantastic, world-class collection, stunning grounds that are ideal for a wander and an incredibly good cafe in the bowels of the building. Their salads are particularly immense, and don't forget to order a cake! What is not to love about this wonderful stalwart of Scottish culture?

This is a lovely wee cafe in a truly beautiful setting. Modern art may not be your thing but the grounds are large and pleasant to stroll through. There is parking at the rear of the building. The food in the cafe is simple but very well done and the dining area opens out on to the back garden where, if there ever is any sunshine, you can sit outside.

Set in beautiful leafy grounds, the modern art gallery is a lovely place to visit. Although it's 15 minute walking distance from Princes Street, it is a touch difficult to navigate to, and is on the obscure and irregular number 13 bus route. There are regular exhibitions and it's always worth checking the website to see what's on first, although the permanent exhibition has some real gems. A couple of awesome Warhols, some eerie holocaust art and the ever funny American Tourist sculptures being my favourites. The staff are generally very friendly and tolerant of little kids. The only downside for parents is the cafe will not allow you to bring your pushchair in. Health and Safety fascism, but what can you do?

This is always an interesting experience. The secret to a good trip here is to take a detour on the way using the water of leith walk way. There is a free but infrequent shuttle bus that makes trips back and forth between this and various other galleries. Using this requires a level of planning and synchronization that are beyond me

We took ourselves for a walk along the river to the Dean Gallery and the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art. This too me was something I was looking forward too after a long walk. Sadly for us they closed off some of the floors to the public in both of the galleries, as they were changing some of the installations and hangings. Both galleries got nice surroundings if you wish to take a rest in the gardens. Dean Gallery has a very nice restaurant attached to it and by the look of it a very busy one too, so I would phone to book in advance.

I called the gallery cafe for access information as I intended to visit for lunch with some friends. 1st attempt at 11.50 a.m. I did not get a reply. I called again about 30 mins. later. A young lady answered and although I had called the correct number for the gallery cafe she tried to give me another number to call, she said she could not understand me. I was born and have lived in Edinburgh all my life.

Scotland's finest collection of modern and contemporary art. Collections ranging from paintings, sculptures, prints and drawings of the 1890's right up to contemporary video installations of the 1990s. Always interesting