A sunday morning on the Paseo del Prado

It was a lovely Sunday morning this weekend and I decided I was in the mood for some art that morning. I had wanted to go to the Reina Sofia, but it was closed due to the day of "los reyes", so walked a bit further up the Paseo del Prado to the Thyssen-Bornemissza art gallery - one of the big three in the Madrid's artistic repertoire.



Out of the three galleries this is my personal favourite. It has a vast collection spanning a 700 years time frame up to and including 20th Century art. It also caters to the art lovers of Monet, Van Gogh, Gaugauin and all the major art movements of the 19th Century which the other two galleries do not have. If you have only time in Madrid to visit only one gallery, and are not too specific on what art you are interested in looking at then go to this one - it has the largest variety and you will not be disappointed in the collection. I didn't do the whole gallery this Sunday as I have been to this museum about 3-4 times, but you do need a whole day really or at least most of the afternoon to see the entire collection. I mainly stuck to the first and ground floor where the 19th-20th century art is located.
Here you will find your Fauvists, impressionists, romanticists, post-impressionists, expressionists, surrealists, cubists - you name it! Certainly proves to be interesting if you want to learn some art history as the art is catagorised by it's genre, and also provides a good cultural education as well as an aesthetic stimulation.

After my time in the gallery I was feeling oh so pretentious and wanted a coffee to follow suite. Not satisfied with the idea of going to the Starbucks next door, even with its chai soy lattes and its view of the Neptune fountain. I wanted grand, yet antique and flaky. Somewhere with character and history, a truly bohemian place to take my cup of black coffee. Where else better than the famous Café Gijón, ten minutes walking distance situated on the Paseo de Recoletos.



It's a deliciously wonderful old world place, built at the end of the 19th century and has been home and inspiration to the Spanish literati and artistic community in the 20th century; as well as being a historical iconic figure in Madrid café life. The place has a decaying grandeur atmosphere to it with its threadbare velvet seats and its chipped gold leaf framed mirrors. It smells musty, and has the ambience of an antique shop. The coffee was nice, but over priced but I supposed it is the price to pay when you are sitting in the seat where the Mata Hari or one of the Spanish literary giants may have sat herself so its excusable. The service is fast, but cold and impersonal - but fast service in Spain is a rarity so think of this as bonus. I guess in hindsight I would probably pay the same in Starbucks for a coffee or just shy of it so maybe not such a bad trade off then. Plus you cant get atmosphere in Starbucks no matter how nice a place it is situated in. I would go back there, and I would recommend going if you are a person who values atmosphere, ambience and history. It's a peaceful place away from the frantic bars of the more familiar Madrid and is a good locale to go to drink a coffee, discuss philosophy with your bohemian friends, write your journal or a novel or read one.

Gallery Review - The Reina Sofia

Before, I reviewed the Prado gallery, now going to head a little further down the Paseo del Prado to the modern art gallery - one of the big "three" art galleries in Madrid. This here is home to Picassos, Dalis, Miros etc. The Reina Sofia is close to the Atocha station, and is a little tucked in away from the main Paseo del Prado, and marks the beginning of the old neighbourhood of Embajadores, only a stones throw away from Lavapies.

The Reina Sofia is situated in an old square dotted around with many beer taverns, tapas bars and cafés. The Museum building itself is an interesting blend of modern and old, with its grand old fascade tastefully blended with the modern glass elevators. Personally I think this combination of modern and old works; it is my favourite style of architecture if it is done right.

When I went in the summer last year it was the anniversary of Picasso's Guernika returning to Spain after the death of Franco, so all the galleries had a Picasso special. The Reina Sofia is in fact the home to Guernika, and it was done by showing in the rooms where this masterpiece is showcased the sketches and ideas leading up to this painting. Maybe this is a more permanent feature, but to my shame I have not really been back to this gallery since the summer. It was very interesting to see how the painting developed, on the back of napkins from Parisian cafés, old sketch books. Seeing ideas used in their original state, changed, or not included at all. It was like seeing the jigsaw puzzle and the DNA for this truly powerful painting.


Now what of Guernica? It is pretty much one of Picasso's most famous masterpieces, an excellent piece of modern art with a powerful and horrific message. No words can describe the effect this painting has on you when you stand in front of it. It is huge, it takes up a whole wall. The pain and the horror feels so real when you see it right in your face brush stroke for brush stroke. I have seen this picture many times in books, documentaries, on the internet but nothing had prepared me to see it live. Art that inspires emotions, the senses and not just a picture that gives you pleasure to look at it goes beyond art. It is a powerful message expressed through an alternative medium, I guess the ideal of what modern art tries to express often (and usually fails). It is not a pretty picture, I felt very uncomfortable looking at it, but sometimes art is like that. I have watched films before which made me feel like shit afterwards, yet there was no denying it was a good film. Its kind of that feeling. Worth seeing if you are in Madrid, just visit the gallery to see this painting.


Other works in the Reina Sofia includes Dali, Miro and other modern artists. I wont lie when I say I am not the biggest modern art fan. I love one or two artists and I consider Picasso and Dali some of my favourite artists. When modern art is good it is superb and the best form of art, however when its bad, it is terrible, abysmal. One of my reasons I am in no hurry to visit modern art museums, unless they have trippy art installations which are just fun or Dalis or Picassos. Now the Reina Sofia does not dissapoint. It has some fantastic Dalis too, which I was very happy to find.

So if you are a modern art lover - you will love the Reina Sofia; if you love art but not so keen on modern all the time it is still worth the time to visit.

Gallery Review - Museo del Prado

Madrid is definitely a city to do if you are into art; as it is the home to three amazing galleries: The Prado, The Thyssen-Bornemisza and The Reina Sofia. All three galleries are very different to each other; with the Prado hosting art from the renaissance times up until the early 19th century, the Thyssen is good if you want impressionists and art from the 19th century (but the collection is very varied and contains old and modern art too), and the Reina Sofia is entirely modern art. When people ask me which is the best one to visit its hard to say - it entirely depends on your taste in Art. All three are worth a visit if you can, and are conveniently located within five minutes walking distance of each other.

Out of all three of the museums though, the Prado un-doubtably has the most impressive building. With its neoclassical facade and statues looking out onto a glamorous tree lined boulevard, the Prado is an impressive sight even to pass in your car. Inside it is filled with some wonderful artistic treasures too. The ground floor is mainly Renaissance art - especially Italian. Here you will find Raphael and Botticelli. It also houses Renaissance German and Dutch paintings too so if you are in search for some Durer or Bosch this is the place to look.

Botticelli - The Story of Nastagio degli Onesti

Bosch - Garden of Delights

My personal favourite is the classical sculpture rooms. Filled with treasures of Grecian and Roman art from all over the mediterranean. This is the reason I have been to the Prado a grand number of five times! I have a definite weak spot for Greco-Roman statues so this place was like artistic heaven for me. Most of the statues are in such good condition as well with beautiful detail. Absolutely devine!

On the upper floors you come to later art consisting of Caravaggio, Titian, El Greco, Rubens, Rembrandt etc - you get the idea. As well as a lot of Spanish art like Velázquez and Goya.


Sometimes they also have temporary exhibitions in the central part of the ground and first floors. I was very lucky last summer to catch the Picasso Exhibition there which focused on his reinterpretations of famous paintings including the one featured on the right (originally by Velázquez - Las Meninas).