Tradition with a twist

An impressive building among others, it isn't until you step into the cool vault of the atrium that you realise the scale of the place.

The commanding entrance hall, with its mezzanines, galleries, domes and echoes is everything it should be.

I am a traditionalist when it comes to museums, and all the essentials were present - stuffed animals, dinosaur skeletons, Roman coins and unlikely rock formations.

What was different was the imagination and intelligence that went into their presentation. The Evolution of Wales exhibition covers 4,600 million years of history and covers much the same ground as any museum in Britain, but somehow makes it seem a unique and vital experience.

Best of all, it manages to educate without seeming to try. Even a five-year-old will be interested in rock formations after being surrounded by erupting volcanos on a 180-degree screen.

Some sections are less than they could be - apart from a marvellous room of Celtic crosses and standing stones, archaeology was a little dry. But the museum manages to offer everything it should while feeling very much a modern experience.

The art gallery is likewise full of treasures, like Monet's studies of sunlight on Rouen Cathedral, and some of his waterlilies series.

There is a sizable collection and a good sample of art through the ages. The open structure of the gallery lets you shuffle art history like a pack of cards. You may stumble on a lonely Van Gogh, one of the last canvases he completed before his suicide, or hidden downstairs, a magnificent Michael Andrews painting of Ayers Rock. Tom Whiteley

Getting There The National Museum and Art Gallery is in the centre of Cardiff, north of the Queen Street shopping area and train station and just next to City Hall in Cathays Park.

Admission is free, except to Walking With Dinosaurs, and the museum is open from 10am till 5pm every day except Mondays. There are cafe facilities. Call 02920 397951or visit www.nmgw.ac.uk.