Find This Year’s Christmas Gifts in Museums’ Online Shops
Advent has started, and we are slowly starting to think about Christmas presents. Austria is currently in lockdown, and nobody dares to believe that he will actually be over on 12.12… But there are other ways to get gifts besides the usual shopping trips! That’s why today we’ll introduce you to our favorite museum online shops.
Museum Shops Online
We just love museum shops – after visiting the exhibitions we like to explore them, buy one or two art postcards, or even a poster or exhibition catalog. Many also offer souvenirs, design, and much more, but with the lockdown, museums and exhibition halls, as well as their shops, had to close. So where do we now get Christmas presents for our art and culture-enthusiastic loved ones? The good news is that some museums have made part of or even their entire range available through online shops, so we can browse digitally and order with a few clicks. This way we are also helping Austrian museums, which are now losing sales again. We can also shop at museums abroad that we can’t currently visit.
From mumok to the Secession to the Neue Galerie Graz – Online Shops for Museums in Austria
Here we’ll introduce you to just a few Austrian museums and their online shops – despite its small size, the selection in Austria is quite big indeed!
The mumok museum shop is always a good place to get gifts. In their online shop, you will not find their entire range, but rather a selection of high-quality gifts like prints and objects by renowned artists such as Cosima von Bonin, Claes Oldenburg, Jakob Maria Knebl, and many more in addition to numerous publications. For example, how about a candle holder from Heimo Zobernig or a signed porcelain mug from Hans Schabus?
An elegant silk tie or scarf from the Vienna Secession makes a great Christmas gift and outfit
The Vienna Secession has a wide range of products in its online shop, from art catalogs to postcards and posters, to printed textiles such as T-shirts and bags, scarves, and ties made of fine silk. They are adorned with Viennese Art Nouveau patterns or details, like the Beethoven Frieze or the golden cupola of the Secession building itself.
Classic art merchandise can be found in the very extensive online shop of the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, where you can search either by product category, by artist, or topic. The range extends from small items such as pencils or postcards with motifs by well-known artists such as Caravaggio or Rembrandt to replicas of, for example, the Saliera.
Many more museums have a great selection of publications, and some also offer artist editions, mostly prints or sculptures – e.g. the Kunst Haus Wien, the Museum Angerlehner, the Neue Galerie Graz, or the Halle für Kunst.
Shopping at our Neighbors: Online Shops in Germany and Switzerland
Our German-speaking neighbors also have a lot to offer! We would like to introduce you to two remarkable online shops of museums in Germany and Switzerland.
In Switzerland, we will direct your attention to the Kunstmuseum Basel and its shop. Here you can find beautiful and original things: how about, for example, socks that show Rembrandt’s “Man in oriental costume” or a mug from the Guerrilla Girls? In addition, there are of course high-quality art prints, catalogs, and much more.
Traveling from Austria to Germany is hardly possible now, but the webshops of Alte National Galerie and many more are still worth a visit.
In Germany, the Staatliche Museen Berlin offer a joint webshop – that means you can choose from a huge range! Included are the Alte Nationalgalerie, the Alte and Neue Museum, the Pergamon Museum, the Museum of Photography, among others. The different categories and filter options simplify the search, and we are pretty sure that you will find something that your heart desires.
Even More Online Shops from Museums in Europe
We could go on like this forever but there is not enough space for that, so we’ll just highlight a few of Europe’s most famous museums and their online shops.
The boutique de musées is an amalgamation of eight top-class museums in France, including the Louvre, the Center Pompidou, and the Musée Picasso. The selection is huge, and of course, there are all sorts of things adorned with the Mona Lisa, but also lots of other amazing art prints, catalogs, jewelry, children’s toys, clothing, and much more.
In the UK, the tate online shop is definitely worth a digital visit! In addition to the usual suspects (art prints, catalogs, clothing, etc.), you can also buy art supplies here – how about the Edgar Degas pastel chalk set and a sketch pad, for example?
Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum also has a highly recommended webshop with a wide range of products. Our highlights include socks and scarves, printed with well-known works of art as well as the great paper vases – and each sale supports women in India. There is also a separate category for Christmas gifts!
In addition, there are of course many, many great museum shops online – just have a look at the website of your favorite museums, you might be lucky.
Happy Art Shopping and Merry Christmas
We hope you’ve got inspired by all these amazing museums and their shops, and that you’ll find the perfect gift for your loved ones – or for yourself. What are you waiting for?
PS: If you are living in Austria, Germany, or Switzerland, you should check out our digital advent calendar: you can win at least one gift every day, entrance tickets, vouchers, cinema or concert tickets, and many more. Just follow our social media channels on Instagram and Facebook!
