Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum in Madrid – history, photo, description, ticket prices 2021, opening hours, map
The Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum in Madrid is a unique collection of genuine masterpieces of painting from the private collection of the Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza family. Here are the canvases of great artists of various schools and trends, created over eight hundred years.
Story
Three generations of the Thyssen-Bornemisz family took part in the creation of the museum exposition. The beginning was laid by a successful German businessman, steel magnate August Thyssen. In 1910, by his order, Auguste Rodin creates several sculptural compositions. Until now, four figures occupy a place of honor in the modern collection, welcoming guests at the entrance to the museum.
The management of the family business and the passion for collecting art passed from August to one of his sons, Heinrich. He began to collect paintings by old European masters, buying them in America during the Great Depression and returning them to their historical homeland. By the time of his death in 1947, there were over 500 works. Under him, for the first time, works of art were exhibited publicly. This happened in 1930 in Munich, since 1936 the exposition was exhibited in a specially built gallery at Heinrich's villa in Lugano (Switzerland). In addition to paintings, he collected tapestries, antique furniture, sculptures, jewelry, and more.
After Heinrich's death, the collection was divided among the heirs. His youngest son, Hans, followed in his footsteps and put a lot of effort into bringing the collection together. In addition, he replenished it with the works of contemporary masters of painting: he bought paintings by the Impressionists, avant-garde artists, hyperrealists, and so on. Like his father, Hans believed that masterpieces should be available for viewing by as many people as possible. Therefore, he constantly organized traveling exhibitions in all countries of the world.
With the increase in the collection, the question arose about choosing a permanent place, because. the gallery in a private villa did not contain all the works, and the conditions could not ensure proper preservation. Of the many proposals received, the choice fell on the Villahermosa Palace (1771).
It is located in the heart of Madrid next to the famous Prado Museum. The Spanish government guaranteed that the exposition be given the status of a state museum. This was important, because it allowed to save the entire collection as a whole. Another of the reasons that influenced the choice was the Spanish origin of Hans' wife, the famous former model Carmen Cervera, who was interested in placing the exposition in her homeland.
The agreement was signed in 1988. It took several years to repair, remake the palace into a museum, and in October 1992 it opened to visitors. By 2004, the collection had expanded to include paintings owned by Carmen Cervera. In addition, members of the Thyssen-Bornemisza family bought valuable paintings and exhibited them in the halls of the museum. Therefore, there was a need to create new areas.
In addition to the main three-story building, a new one was built nearby in a modern style. Now the museum, in addition to demonstrating the permanent collection, hosts various temporary exhibitions, seminars and other events.
exposition
The permanent exhibition includes two separate collections: the baron and his wife. The first, consisting of 775 works formerly owned by the baron, was bought by the Spanish state for $ 350 million. The other, which is the property of his widow – Carmen Cervera and includes 304 canvases, was rented for a long time. It is on display in the new building.
The list of some artists intersects, these are outstanding masters of the XIII – XX centuries. The arrangement of the paintings goes by date: from older to modern. Most of the canvases are painted in oils, there are also watercolors, pastels, works created using tempera and gold.
Conventionally, the exposition can be divided into four parts. The first unites paintings by Italian, German, Dutch, Flemish artists of the 13th-15th centuries. These are landscapes, portraits, paintings on religious and mystical subjects: Niccolo di Tommaso "The Virgin and Child", Marco Zoppo "Saint Jerome in the Desert", Francesco Botticini "Saint Cecilia", Jan van Eyck "The Annunciation" and others.
The second part contains works of the Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Classicism, covering the 16th – 18th centuries. Here you can see the works of such famous painters as: Tintoretto "The Meeting of Tamar and Judas", Titian's "Virgin and Child", Rubens "The Blinding of Samson", Veronese "Portrait of a Woman with a Dog", Caravaggio "St. Catherine of Alexandria", El Greco "Annunciation" and etc.
The third part combines paintings of the 19th-20th centuries. They are represented by such movements as: impressionism, avant-gardism, surrealism, symbolism, cubism. These are paintings by Claude Monet, Paul Cezanne, Auguste Renoir, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Paul Gauguin, Pablo Picasso, Wassily Kandinsky, Marc Chagall. Admiring spectators see famous paintings: Van Gogh's The Potato Eaters, Edgar Degas' Dance in Green, Salvador Dali's The Dream Caused by the Flight of a Bee, Pablo Picasso's Man with Clarinet and many others.
The fourth part consists of curious and little-known in Europe canvases by North American painters of the 19th-20th centuries. These are, for example, the works of the abstract artist D. Pollock “Brown and Silver I", the representative of pop art R. Liechtenstein “Woman in the Bathroom”, and so on. The works of American artists occupy four rooms of the museum.
Opening hours and ticket prices
The permanent exhibition is open:
The museum is closed on January 1st, May 1st and December 25th. Last entry is one hour before closing. Tickets for temporary exhibitions are sold separately.
Where is it located and how to get there
The museum is located in the center of Madrid on Paseo del Prado, 8.
The nearest metro station to the museum: Banco de España, Line 2,
Buses No. 1, 2, 5, 9, 10, 14, 15, 20, 27, 34, 37, 41, 51, 52, 53, 74, 146, 150.