Here at Flavorpill, we have a thing for gorgeous museums and virtual globetrotting, so we thought it was fitting to give you fabulous fodder for adventure daydreaming on one of the last Summer Fridays of the year by taking a look at stunning museums in some of the most remote locations in the world.
As Helen Keller, the eternally inspiring, well-traveled activist and author, once said, “life is either a great adventure or nothing,” and we couldn’t agree more. Whether you’re planning your next extreme vacation or just want to get the mental heck out of dodge, click through to check out some extraordinary museums that will require logging a few extra hours with your online travel agency of choice. Help us discover more awesome isolated cultural destinations by telling us about any you’ve visited in the comments below!
World Mammoth and Permafrost Museum by Balmori Associates and Leeser Architecture — Yakutsk, Siberia
Image credit: Leeser Architecture via core.form-ula
This ultra modern, super-insulated building is being built to study and showcase the great Siberian mammoth and the region’s unique, naturally patterned permafrost layer. The website states that “the centre will contain an intact mammoth discovered nearby and provide access to underground galleries from which the permafrost can be viewed.” Bundle up, and prepare to ooh and aah over a recently discovered intact woolly mammoth found nearby, and a café that floats above an indoor garden.
Port Lockroy Museum — Port Lockroy, Antarctica
Image credit: Sahar; terriniphoto
Once a military operation during WWII, Port Lockroy base is now a museum showcasing what life was like living on an isolated research station in Antarctica surrounded by penguins. From the photos, it looks surprisingly pleasant, albeit decidedly chilly.
Skógar Folk Museum — Skógar, Iceland
Image credit: emilybean; Ed Kim
According to the official travel guide of Southern Iceland, this grass-roofed museum “preserves the cultural heritage of southern Iceland through its collection of tools and equipment, handicrafts, old buildings, books, manuscripts, and documents.” There’s also a two-headed sheep and apparently a delightful cafe serving Icelandic soups and homemade cakes. Not to miss: the drop dead gorgeous Skógafoss waterfall next door.
The Savitsky Karakalpakstan State Art Museum — Nukus, Uzbekistan
Image credit: Fromoverhere; Joshua Kucera; David Pin
Housing over 82,000 items, including the second largest collection of Russian avant-garde in the world, the museum showcases the work of the controversial Russian painter, archeologist, and collector, Igor Savitsky. Only accessible to the outside world since 1991, the museum is hailed as a must-see if you’re visiting Uzbekistan. Oh, and there’s an old school amusement park next door with a ferris wheel.
Museum of Islamic Art by I.M. Pei — Doha, Quatar
Image credit: you-are-here; idesignarch
Situated on its own man-made island just off shore from the Qatari capital of Doha in the Persian Gulf and designed by Pritzker Prize-winner I.M. Pei, the building is a stunning nod to ancient Islamic architecture. Fittingly, it houses the most complete collection of Islamic artifacts in the world.
Inujima Art Project Seirensho by Hiroshi Sambuichi with Yukinori Yanagi — Inujima, Japan
Image credit: BIG IN JAPAN; C.Y. Huang; lovethelife
Perhaps one of the most beautiful examples of adaptive re-use we have ever seen, this industrial rehabilitation project on the remote island of Inujima preserved the remains of an old copper refinery, turning it into an art space using solar, geothermal, and other natural energies to reduce the burden on the environment. As the project’s site poetically explains, its “based on the concept of using the existing to create the yet-to-be.” If this is the future, we can’t wait for it to come.
Itchiku Kubota Art Museum — Fuji-Kawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan
Image credit: HANDEYE; Rob Gilhooly via Government of Japan, Public Relations Office
Showcasing the work of the famous Japanese textile artist, Itchiku Kubota, the museum celebrates the lost art of Tsujigahana, a technique used to dye kimonos in the 14th century. Not to miss: the great view of Mount Fuji from the grounds and the Japanese tea house complete with its own small waterfall.
James Turrell Museum at Bodega Colomé — Colomé, Argentina
Image credit: Southern Cone Guidebooks; Florian Holzherr via The Wall Street Journal; Goldini Blog
The Bodega Colomé is two hours by plane from Buenos Aires followed by a four-hour drive on unpaved, mountain roads. That being said, it’s well worth it. The museum is situated on the grounds of the oldest working winery in Argentina and there’s a luxury hotel with views of the Andes Mountains.
Ordos Museum by MAD — Ordos, Inner Mongolia, China
Image credit: Iwan Baan via ArchitectureLinked
Take a virtual tour of this modern museum smack dab in the middle of the Mongolian desert here.
The Chinati Foundation — Marfa, Texas
Image credit: My 2 Cents; AH HOLE AH HOLE; The Ideas Section
What’s a piece about amazing art in remote locations without a mention of Marfa. One word: go.