Haugar kunstmuseum
Haugar kunstmuseum in Tønsberg shows contemporary Norwegian art and its collection in a former seamen’s school at Haugar, with a café and museum shop.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
Haugar kunstmuseum was founded in 1993 by Vestfold county council and Tønsberg municipality and opened to the public in September 1995. From 1998 the county council ran the museum, and since 2009 it has been a department of Vestfoldmuseene IKS. The foundation still owns the collections.
The museum is housed in Tønsberg’s former seamen’s school, designed by Bjercke and Eliassen and built in 1918–21. The sculptor Wilhelm Rasmussen decorated the façade with twelve caryatids in larvikite. The building stands on Haugar, a hill in the centre of Tønsberg that was a thing (assembly) site in the Viking Age.
The museum has mainly shown contemporary Norwegian art, alongside older and international art. The collection exhibition highlights pop art, material-based art and abstraction.
Highlights
- The collection exhibition with pop art, material-based art and abstraction
- Historic building with caryatids in larvikite
- URO Kafé og Bar, with a terrace
- Guided tours, also with audio description on request
Permanent exhibition
- Samlingen – Highlights from the museum’s collection with pop art, material-based art and abstraction.
- Founded
- 1995
- Operated by
- Vestfoldmuseene IKS
Admission & discounts
| Adults | NOK 150 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | NOK 100Children aged 7–17, concessions (honnør) and students |
| Children & teens | NOK 100free up to age 6 · Children aged 7–17 |
| Seniors | NOK 100Concession (honnør) |
| Visitors with disabilities | –Companion cards are accepted. |
| Students & apprentices | NOK 100 |
| Groups (10+ people) | NOK 100 per personAdults in groups, per person |
| Families | NOK 4002 adults and children aged 0–17 |
Free admission: Free admission at all exhibition openings.
Annual passes are available. Free admission for members of Venneforeningen (the Friends’ association; a companion gets 50% off), for visual artists and craftspeople with valid documentation, for press and critics, and for teachers preparing school visits by arrangement. Certain activity days and events may have separate prices.
Accessibility
- Wheelchair accessible
- Elevator
- Accessible restroom
- Accessible parking
- Service dogs welcome: no information
- Tactile models & exhibits: no information
- Sign language tours: no information
- Easy-to-read materials: no information
- Audio description
Parking for people with reduced mobility just outside the town wall. Lift from street level and between the exhibition floors. Ramp to the café terrace. Two accessible toilets. Two wheelchairs can be borrowed. Companion cards are accepted. Guided tours with audio description can be booked.
Kids & families
| Kids’ admission | free up to age 6 |
|---|---|
| Family ticket | NOK 400 · 2 adults and children aged 0–17 |
- Family tours & workshops
- Stroller-friendly
Pushchairs can be borrowed for small children; own pushchairs are not permitted in the exhibition areas. Teaching programmes for schools.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Fylkeshuset · 4-min walk
Bus: Fylkeshuset stop (about 4 minutes’ walk); Tønsberg bus terminal is about 7 minutes away. Train: Tønsberg station is about 9 minutes’ walk (about 1 hour 20 minutes from Oslo).
By car
Parking available
Parking at the bottom of St. Olavs gate. Alternatively at Tønsberg swimming pool and at Haugating, each about 5–7 minutes’ walk away.
- Accessible parking
Amenities & dining
- Café
- Museum shop
URO Kafé og Bar in the museum serves lunch, coffee, tea and pastries and has a terrace. Museum shop.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Guided tours of the exhibitions, also with audio description on request. Private tours can be arranged both during and outside opening hours. |
