The best museums Himalaya

This museum allows the public to discover works of art dating from 1850 to the present. In addition to the permanent collection, there are occasional exhibitions. It is located in the old Maharaja palace of Jaipur, where you can admire the works of many contemporary Indian artists in different styles. The Museum of Modern Art was born under the impetus of Nehru and Maulana Azad, Minister of Education from 1947 to 1958 and considered one of the major authors of Urdu language in the th century. It opened its doors in 1954.

The 17 000 works owned by the museum allow to trace the different currents in the history of modern Indian art in a particularly clear and interesting way. It reveals the liveliness of Indian contemporary art, which is completely unknown in our surroundings.

. The story begins with miniature painting, a pictorial tradition very practiced in northern India from the th century. This school is still in practice in Rajasthan or Punjab.

. and Mysore. You can admire works of the pictorial tradition of Thanjavur and Mysore in southern India. Most are of religious inspiration and are a style rich in detail and often enhanced by the gold leaf. The school of Mysore is mainly expressed on paper, while the Thanjavur school is a practice of fabric painting.

European travellers. The movement of travellers from Europe was particularly successful with British painters who travel to India from 1770 to the search for contracts. This tradition lasted until the mid th century and most works are oils on canvas, Western techniques glorified by a orientalist vision that gives India a mysterious and exotic image.

Period of the Company. This style refers to the period from the th to the th century, under the Eastern Company of India. Indian artists, who meet the requirements of British settlers, focus on painting flora and fauna, folk traditions, monuments and landscapes. This school is at the crossroads between naturalism and intimacy and the medieval style of miniaturisme.

Academic realism. From 1870, Indian painting is a radical turning point. It is mainly due to learning the technique of Indian painting, as well as to the public's taste for a realistic and naturalist vision of the themes represented. One of the greatest artists at the time was Pastonji Bomanjee, a painter born in Trivandrum, Kerala.

The school in Bengal. Launched by Abanindranath Tagore, the famous family of intellectuals in Calcutta, the movement is created in total failure with the school of academic realism. Tagore draws on old techniques, materials and forms of Indian pictorial expression to create a pan-Indian movement. It will then expand its movement to the whole of Asia by studying Japanese techniques. The result is a nebulous and romantic vision of India, its landscapes, its historical or pastoral scenes.

Amrita Sher-Gil (1913-1941). This artist, born of Indian father and Hungarian mother, trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. His first canvases, dating back to 1930, reflect European style and style of life. Back in India from 1934, his style is self-indulgent and she takes on the colours, textures and vitality of the country. The museum has the largest collection of this major artist, with no fewer than 100 different paintings.

Jamini Roy (1887-1972). This Bengali artist drew in the traditional folk expression, pratiquant and simplifying forms. Throughout his career, he used only a palette of 7 different colours.

School of Shantiniketan. In 1901, the immense poet and artist Rabindranath Tagore founded a small school in the village of Shantiniketan. Education is based on studies in the natural environment rather than on studio work. This results in works inspired by natural contexts where each artist could print his own vision. Nandalal Bose is one of the major artists of this school.

Abstraction in Indian contemporary art. This section presents works by artists very different parties in search of purity of lines, shapes and colours, from the years 1950-1960. Gaitonde, Patel and Mohamedi are among those artists who have initiated the movement.

Movements of the 1970 s. In the early 1970 s, the narrative form turned more towards the mythical and mystic. Artists express their fears and obsessions in a dreamlike, enchanted manner. The works of KG Subramayan or Prabhakar Barwe reflect this new metaphysical dimension.

Contemporaries. The early 1980 s marks a gradual reversal of the themes that undermine the "old". Young artists turn to new forms of artistic expression and taste in painting, video, photo, screenwriting of three-dimensional elements. The themes are about gender, the environment and the urban crisis.

In addition to galleries dedicated to painting, the museum also includes galleries dedicated to sculpture and photography.

Opened a few years ago in Kathmandu, MONA is the first museum dedicated to contemporary and traditional Nepalese art. Its mission is to showcase local artists, past and present, and raise public awareness of Nepal's rich cultural heritage and its age-old artistic practices and traditions. Located within the Kathmandu Guest House, the museum hosts permanent and temporary exhibitions. An opportunity to highlight the historical and cultural influences that have shaped Nepalese art over two millennia.

Opened just after the abolition of the monarchy - the last king, Gyanendra, left Narayanhiti on June 11, 2008 - this museum is housed in the fortified royal palace north of Durbar Marg named Narayanhiti. A composition of "Narayana" (the Hindu god Vishnu) and "Hiti", which means "water spout" in the Newar language and represents a traditional fountain. It's huge: 3,800^m2, divided into three parts: the guest wing, the state wing and the private wing.

History. Its existence at this location goes back many centuries, since in 1846 Prime Minister Fateh Jung Shah was assassinated in this palace during the Kot massacre, along with some forty civilians. In 1886, Prime Minister Rana Bir Shumsher ordered its demolition and reconstruction as the residence of King Prithvi Bir Bikram Shah, his son-in-law, moving the royal residence from Hanuman Dhoka to Durbar Square here in Narayanhiti. Damaged by the earthquake of 1934, during which two of King Tribhuvan's granddaughters died, it was renovated and a staircase added. However, King Mahendra ordered it demolished and rebuilt in 1963 by Benjamin Polk, an American architect living in India, who completed the building in 1969. A house-warming party (Griha Pravesh) took place within these walls on February 27, 1970, for the marriage of Crown Prince Birendra. In 1972, Mahendra declared the palace a royal office and bequeathed it to the Nepalese government as a dowry from his grandmother Queen Divyeshwari. On June¹, 2001, Crown Prince Dipendra murdered several members of the royal family in the palace, including King Birendra and Queen Aishwarya, before committing suicide. A tragic end.

Visit. This museum traces the history of the royal family right up to the abolition of the monarchy. The visit is long (1h30 to 2h minimum), so make sure you're in good shape: nineteen rooms used by the royal family are open to the public and feature a vast collection of exhibits. Don't miss the Gorkha Baithak throne room, with its immense chandelier, and the reception hall, with two stuffed Bengal tigers in hunting posture, killed by kings Mahendra and Birendra. Also on show: relics of the monarchy (full-length paintings of the kings and ceremonial photographs), a collection of vintage royal cars and the centerpiece: the crown jewels, on display since 2018. The tour is educational, with explanatory panels.