Private museum of the painter couple Mesdag in The Hague, with masterpieces of the Barbizon School and the Hague School in a setting from 1887.
October 16, 2026 – January 10, 2027
Etchings, watercolors and small paintings that James McNeill Whistler created on his travels through the Netherlands, complemented by works by his Dutch contemporaries. Runs alongside the Whistler exhibition at the Van Gogh Museum.
The marine painter Hendrik Willem Mesdag and his wife, the painter Sientje Mesdag-van Houten, began collecting art in the 1860s. Their interest lay above all in contemporary French landscape painters of the Barbizon School and the artists of the Hague School, to which Mesdag himself belonged. They particularly prized sketch-like studies in which the painter's hand remains visible.
When the collection grew too large for their home on the Laan van Meerdervoort, the couple had a museum of their own built right next door, which opened to visitors in 1887. In 1903 the Mesdags donated the building and collection to the Dutch state; Mesdag continued to run the museum until 1911.
Since the early 1990s the museum has been managed by the Van Gogh Museum foundation. After a comprehensive restoration, it reopened in 2011 under the name De Mesdag Collectie. The galleries still preserve the atmosphere of a 19th-century private museum, while temporary exhibitions are shown in the former residence next door.
The collection includes paintings by Corot, Daubigny, Rousseau, Millet and Delacroix, works by the Maris brothers, Anton Mauve and Jozef Israëls, as well as Japanese decorative arts and ceramics by Theo Colenbrander. Vincent van Gogh saw some of the French paintings in The Hague in 1882 and wrote enthusiastically about them in his letters – a connection the museum now explores in a presentation of its own.
| Adults | €15 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €10Students (except on public holidays) and CJP holders – at the ticket desk only, not online |
| Children & teens | freefree up to age 17 · Children and young people under 18 free. |
| Seniors | –No senior discount listed. |
| Visitors with disabilities | –companion free · Visitors who cannot get around the museum on their own may bring a companion free of charge; add the free companion ticket when buying online. |
| Students & apprentices | €10Available only at the ticket desk, not on public holidays. |
| Public guided tour (60 min.) | €6Plus admission, max. 15 people |
| Private guided tour (60 min., max. 15 people) | €90Per group, plus admission |
Free with the Museumkaart; also free with the Ooievaarspas, ICOM card, Rembrandtkaart, Rotterdampas, VriendenLoterij VIP card and for Vrienden van Mesdag. Tickets online or at the ticket desk; card payment only in the museum.
Elevator to all floors (110 × 150 cm, door 90 cm), wheelchair-accessible restroom on the first floor next to the shop; wooden thresholds of 1–3 cm between the galleries, narrow shell-gravel paths in the garden. One loaner wheelchair (reserve in advance by email) and folding stools. Wheelchairs, rollators and mobility scooters up to 500 kg permitted. Large-print gallery texts at the information desk, low-sensory openings and preparation materials; the Sunflower lanyard is recognized. Accessible parking spaces on public streets, the nearest in front of Laan van Meerdervoort 52 (about 75 m). Sign language video about the museum on haagsekunstgrepen.nl.
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
Vredespaleis · 250 m
From Den Haag Centraal, bus 24 (toward Kijkduin) or 28 (toward Zuiderstrand); from Den Haag HS, tram 1 (toward Scheveningen Noord); in each case to the Vredespaleis stop. From there, cross the Carnegieplein and turn right onto the Laan van Meerdervoort.
No on-site parking at the museum.
No dedicated parking; paid parking on the street and in the surrounding area. Valet parking possible for events. Bicycle parking at the entrance in the front garden.
The museum is around the corner from the Peace Palace; there is no taxi stand in front of the building.
Get directionsMuseum café and shop during opening hours, also accessible without a museum ticket. Garden with a view of the Peace Palace; picnicking allowed. Card payment only.
Up to 100 guests.
Historic hall for 50 guests (100 when no exhibition is on), small and large garden rooms for 20–40 people, and the garden. Licensed wedding venue; exclusive opening of the museum outside opening hours possible. No in-house catering; referrals to partner caterers.
Inquiries & details| Guided tours | yes · approx. 60 min |
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| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Private guided tours in Dutch or English (other languages on request); public guided tours in Dutch, and for the Whistler exhibition on set dates at 13:00 and 14:30. Audio stories and the "Vogelspotcast" as a podcast on the website. Accompanied museum visits for seniors in November 2026. School programs for primary school (group 3) and secondary school. |
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