MONA: The world's most far-out museum

Thu, 02/02/2012 - 04:55 — Anonymous by Ian Lloyd Neubauer Chiseled into an
escarpment on the banks of the Derwent River in the northern suburbs of
Hobart is a subterranean fortress housing one of the most confronting and
controversial collections of art in the world. The crowning achievement of
Tasmanian David Walsh, a mathematician and art collector who made millions
perfecting algorithms that let him to beat casinos and bookies at their own
game, MONA (Museum of Old and New Art) has made a name for itself by breaking
every rule in the book since opening its doors in January of last year. The
entrance, for example, casts aside the grand porticos and columns commonly
seen at museums in favor of a synthetic tennis court and unmarked doorway.
"When you go to a conventional museum you are forced to walk up stairs and
past pillars meant to make you feel small and then have academics tell you
it's culture," says research curator Delia Nicholls. "But David wanted
none of that so he built this place underground." Why the tennis court?
"Because he likes tennis," says Nicholls.read more