Strangely enough I came across this song, just a couple of days after returning from Madrid, where on my list was a visit to the Museo Nactional Art Reina Sofia. The museum is housed in a former hospital and provides a great space for view modern and contemporary art.
It is most famous for the fact that it is the home to one of the most famous anti-war paintings ever, Guernica by Pablo Picasso.
This painting is enormous, the scale is incredible, it is 3.5 metres high and 7.8 metres long. Rather than depict a single battle scene, he expresses the horror of war and the impact on ordinary people using abstract and Cubist forms. At the time of writing there is an exhibition entitled “Rethinking Guernica”. An online version can be found here.
Not far from the Museo Reina Sofia is the Museo Nacional Del Prado. This is one of Madrid’s most popular attractions. It was opened in 1819 and houses an impressive collection of paintings by such artists such as Velazquez, Goya, El Greco, Rubens and Bosch. Unfortunately photos are not permitted but visit the museum website here for a flavour of what to expect.
In the meantime enjoy this piece from outside the museum.
This installation started life in 2001 and was installed in Porto, Portugal, over the years they have been previously to Madrid and to Chicago. They were designed by the sculptor Juan Muñoz to make people feel both welcome and uneasy as they walked by.
Dani Garcia is an internationally renowned Spanish chef from Marbella, Spain, known for combining traditional Andalusian ingredients and flavours with modern cooking techniques. After earning three Michelin stars for his restaurant in Marbella, García chose to focus on bringing Spanish cuisine to a wider audience. One of his ventures is the BiBo Dani Garcia brand which has more of a fusion feel to it.
Definitely worth a visit is you are in that part of town, a short bus ride away from the Prado on the 14, 27 or 49 bus.