Walking from the Binnenhof to the Peace Palace, the Mesdag Panorama falls right on the way, and the walk is worth every minute of it to grasp the flavor of the town.When you pay a Ten Euro entry fee, I believe you wish to see something more than what this place shows you. You enter the ground floor where there is a cute little gift shop with nice people in it, and then you go through the series of photographs of sea-horizons taken over several years. Being a sailor myself, this was nothing new to me. Then at the end of the hallway, which is really not long, you find a staircase leading up to a floor above, where there is..... no, maybe the mystery should stay intact for you to find out yourself when you are there. When I look back one of the reasons of me liking it was that I could not really figure out what it is from the reviews. Its wonderful. However, don't get over excited and expect a lot. You will need a max of 30 minutes here, to be generous.
I was astonished how beautiful it is. It's like you can walk into the painting. Very strange. I would recommend it to everybody.
Panorama Mesdag is one of the last panorama paintings left in the world. It's the turn of the century (last century) equivalent of 3 D and quite impossible to explain that once "in it", it hard to believe that what you are seeing is actually a painting. The museum is very low key, and not well known to visitors but is probably one of the most extraordinary (art) attractions in the Netherlands.Before going into the panaroma painting itself, you should take the time to watch the film explaining the renovation of the painting, which is in itself an amazing technological feat. And if you have the time, take a trip along the boulevard in Scheveningen (where the painting was painted) to see for yourself what it actually looks like for real. Do this preferably beforehand. The detail in the panorama is extraordinary and even today many of the exact buildings are still standing. Really, nothing can quite explain what it is like, so you just really "have to go to know"!Certainly, you should not visit the Hague without seeing this panorama. The museum also has a very nice shop (as most museums in the Netherlands), a great place to buy presents and a very pleasant cafe.If you are trying to introduce your children, young or teenagers to art, this is a terrific place to start, as the fascination of whether they are seeing a painting or a real view will intrigue most people including children.
This 360-degree view of the beach and town of Scheveningen more than 100 years ago was painted mainly by Hendrik Willem Mesdag, a notable marine painter and member of the The Hague School of painters, which also included Jozef Israels, the three Maris brothers, and Anton Mauve among others. It is a charming piece of work that, by putting viewers at the centre, makes them think that they are in the scene in a way that is most unusual. It is a small museum but well worth a visit.
It is hard to describe the size of the Panorama, the outside of the building doesn't give any hint of the huge painting within it. My children groaned when I said we were going to a gallery, but they loved it and enjoyed looking for specific features. As we live near Scheveningen, it is interesting to see such a vast visual record of what the area looked like in the 1880s. The downstairs exhibition space is also great and the newly refurbished cafe is calm and airy. Ask at the desk for the Audio description to be played in English, it's old-fashioned sounding but very informative. Great value if you have a museum card too.
Panorama Mesdag houses a panorama-painting of Scheveningen, the seaside of the Hague. A delight for young and old, near the centre of the town.
Must See !!! Scheveningen in the old style. See it before you go to scheveningen. ! ! ! And don't forget to forget your mother in law there.
The walk up the stairs to the panorama does not prepare you for what yo are about to view - this place is fantastic and should not be missed. Ask for the explanation in English, it is played to the whole gallery but is worth hearing as it explains what you are viewing from all points of the compass. Also, not to be missed - until March 2015 - are a series of photographs in the gallery below of the North Sea horizon taken by Bruno Van Den Elshout. It is amazing how a series of photographs taken In the same location every hour for a year can be so different, the colours are amazing.
I didnt really understand what the museum is about. I guess it was a really impressive painting, but cannot really figure out the message. There was a nice cafe downstair. Good menu and nice atmosphere.
This panorama painting of The Hague in the late1800's is of historic value, but of little artistic value when compared to the Mauritshuis. I would say it was not worth the price of admission, but our visit was redeemed by a special exhibit, a conceptual artist's photographs of the sea from one spot in The Hague.