You may not want to go all the way to Madrid to visit an arts museum, but should you ever get there, the Museo Thyssen Bornesmisza could be THE place to get you interested in painting, maybe for the first time.
I am writing this review for those of you who until now probably couldn't care ... Read review
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
Advantages: Excellent Impressionist and Expressionist collection Disadvantages: none
...you ever get there, the Museo Thyssen Bornesmisza could be THE place to get you interested in painting, maybe for the first time.
I am writing this review for those of you who until now probably couldn't care less about the fine arts, let alone paintings. Maybe you have regarded the interest in arts to be pseudo intellectual, or too difficult to get into, or you have just been turned away by one of these dark and pompous works by an ... ...not.
The Museo Thyssen Bornemisza invites you to take a fresh approach at viewing paintings. Everything about this museum and its collection is light - the open architecture of the Palacio de Villahermosa, the natural daylight in the main hall and in every room, the warm and sunny colours of the walls, and of course the exhibits themselves.
Before I take you on a guided tour, here is some basic information on the museum ... more
You may not want to go all the way to Madrid to visit an arts museum, but should you ever get there, the Museo Thyssen Bornesmisza could be THE place to get you interested in painting, maybe for the first time.
I am writing this review for those of you who until now probably couldn't care less about the fine arts, let alone paintings. Maybe you have regarded the interest in arts to be pseudo intellectual, or too difficult to get into, or you have just been turned away by one of these dark and pompous works by an old Flamish master.
If you are already an expert, you may find something new in this review, though probably not much - but this opinion adresses the 95% of the population who are not.
The Museo Thyssen Bornemisza invites you to take a fresh approach at viewing paintings. Everything about this museum and its collection is light - the open architecture of the Palacio de Villahermosa, the natural daylight in the main hall and in every room, the warm and sunny colours of the walls, and of course the exhibits themselves.
Before I take you on a guided tour, here is some basic information on the museum itself, and how it fits into the arts scene of Madrid. You may want to skip this part and jump directly to the tour below.
------------
The Thyssen Bornemisza is one of three museums in Madrid's "Triangle of Fine Arts". The other two are the famous Museo del Prado and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia.
The Prado covers mainly Spanish Painting up to the so called "Golden Aera" (17th Century), which is represented by such painters as Goya and Velázquez. This is exactly what you DON'T want to see on your first introduction to paintings. Simply speaking, it's the same old stuff which you have already learned to hate: dark landscapes, fat women, and clerical scenes. If you're not really into this and don't have to boast to your friends about having been at the Prado, then you may well enjoy your weekend trip to Madrid without ever bothering about the Prado.
If you go to the second flour of the Thyssen Bornemisza, which I have left out of my tour on purpose, you get an idea of what awaits you in the Prado. (The 2nd floor covers Italian Renaissance and Post-Renaissance paintings.)
The Reina Sofia is mainly a collection of Spanish 20th Century art which includes both paintings and sculptures. It contains such famous artists as Dalí, Picasso and Miró. The exhibits there are a lot more accessible to the beginner than those at the Prado. I personally regard a visit to Reina Sofia the logical continuation of the Thyssen Bornemisza. I am also planning to post an opinion on the Reina Sofia soon.
Now you should understand why I recommend to visit the Thyssen Bornemisza first: its collection is most accessible to the novice. There are only two other museums in Europe which I could recommend for the same reason: the Museum Ludwig in Cologne, and the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.
Let's begin the tour.
--------------
This may come as a surprise, but we start with the museum shop. They have done a great job at merchandising, and it may stir your imagination: "Wouldn't this poster of a blue pony and a pink lady go well with our green sofa?" or "I would like to have that T-shirt with the blue and yellow picture of Waterloo Bridge!" You get the idea. Now you can approach the tour with an open mind.
My tour covers only a fraction of the collection. I'm focussing on the part which deals with REALISM. Realism? Unlike Idealism, Realism shows the visible and natural in this world. It contains such schools of painting as Impressionism and Expressionism (we will get to that in a moment).
Let's go to the first floor and pass by the Dutch 17th Century painters (Urgh!) and the Rokoko period. Our first stop is room 29: North American Art, 19th Century. Sounds okay. (From here on, just follow the room numbers in serial order.)
Most of the paintings here are examples of the ROMANTIC period, ie. pictures of landscapes and people capturing "perfect moments". This compares to taking your boyfriend/girlfriend on a walk in the sunset. Towards the end of the century, the style becomes more critical, even cynical, and adds illusionary elements to reality. Example: "Tom's River" by Peto.
Next stop, European Painting, 19th Century. The same again about Romanticism which turns realistic at the end, but without getting critical. That means: landscapes and people in their normal state, without the "Sunday afternoon effect".
This development culminated in IMPRESSIONISM at the end of the 19th century. Impressionism seeks to capture a short moment of reality, for example a cathedral in a special morning light which only lasts half an hour (a short impression). Unlike in previous periods, when paintings took weeks or months until completion, the impressionist works were created in only a few hours. Thus the technique was anything but elaborate, and impressionism was not accepted as fine art by the establishment at the time.
The museum is full of examples of Impressionist painting by all the famous artists. Manet, Monet, Pissarro and Renoir have applied this technique to buildings and landscapes, whereas Degas used it on people. The most famous examples here are probably "Rue Saint Honoré on a rainy afternoon" by Pissarro and "The floating dancer" by Degas.
A late form of Impressionism, POST-IMPRESSIONISM, includes such famous painters as Van Gogh, Cézanne and Gauguin. Still using some of the simplistic techniques introduced by the Impressionists, these works now become symbolic, i.e. "they have a message". This school is often referred to as SYMBOLISM. Example: "Picture of a farmer" by Cézanne. These painters also linked Impressionism with Expressionism (further below).
Other late forms include FAUVISM and POINTILISM, which go even further in reducing the picture to a composition of single points of colour. Examples on display here: "Waterloo Bridge" by Derain and "Yellow flowers" by Matisse.
At the beginning of the 20th century EXPRESSIONISM comes up in Germany. The expressionist collection is maybe THE highlight of the Museo Thyssen Bornemisza, probably the most comprehensive collection worldwide. Expressionism takes Symbolism further by insisting that every picture must express a feeling or state of mind (hence the name). To make the message more visible, these painters apply very shrill colours.
The first group of expressionist painters is THE BRIDGE, which includes Kirchner, Heckel, Schmidt-Rottluff, Bleyl and Pechstein. There are around twenty paintings of thsi group on display.
The second group, "THE BLUE RIDER" goes further in creating its won world where animals symbolise purity and beauty. The most important and beautiful painting in the museum is "The dream" by Marc, which features the blue pony and pink lady mentioned before. Another great one is "Cirkus" by Macke.
Our tour of Realist painting in this museum ends with "Metropolis" by Grosz, which displays the hectic atmosphere and anonymity in a modern city, in blood red colour.
-------------
The Museo Thyssen Bornemisza has an excellent website - www.museothyssen.org - where you can explore all of this in much more detail.
The museum is located on the avenue Paseo del Prado, opposite the Museo del Prado.
Advantages: Stylish, rich collection, excellent facilities and ambience Disadvantages: none
...El Greco. But the Museo Thyssen Bornemisza should not be missed. Lets start by talking about the gallery itself, which is very stylish and well run. Most of the staff seem to be highly elegant young women, all dressed in green blazers and blue skirts, and with excellent foreign language skills (in particular they all seem to speak English), and obviously well trained in “customer care”. I’ve never been in a gallery where the staff ... ...little disconcerting after experiencing the surly State employees of El Prado who seem to act like sheep dogs snapping at the heels of errant visitors. The impression is actually like wandering into one of those sets from a James Bond film, where the wealthy, but criminal, industrialist is surrounded by his staff of beautiful people. The building is actually the restored Palacio de Villahermosa and is a very beautiful building in itself. The collection ...
tomc 06.05.2001
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Museo Thyssen Bornemisza
Advantages: Wonderful site and collection Disadvantages: none
The Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza is sited in a rather inconspicuous building not to far from the Prado. If you have time to visit it, it is definitely worth a look. It is a collection of art varying from Velazquez through to Liechtenstein and was sold by an aristocratic couple after whom the museum is named, for about $600m. Although not as grand as the Prado, it contains some real gems. My personal favourite is a piece by Salvador Dali, entitled 'Dream ... ...the title is unfamiliar, the painting won't be. It is one of his most famous pieces and is a marvel to see.
If you are someone interested in seeing how a collection develops through someone's lifetime or simply like good art, it is a must. It also contains a very well stocked gift shop where they sell poster copies of almost all the pictures in the collection ...
wahoowahey 07.10.2000
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Museo Thyssen Bornemisza
Prices
Is it worth visiting?
Transport links
Family Friendly
Similar reviews »
Reviews which might be of interest for "Museo Thyssen Bornemisza"
Advantages: Comprehensive collection of 20th Century Spanish masters Disadvantages: Ridiculous examples of Minimal "Art"
The Museum Reina Sofia contains the most complete collection worldwide of famous 20th Century Spanish masters such as Pablo Picasso, Joan Miró and Salvador Dalí, and is worth an extensive visit when travelling to Madrid.
The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, so its full name, is one of the three famous museums of fine art in Madrid, a trio which includes the Museo del Prado and the MuseoThyssenBornemisza.
I have discussed the ThyssenBornemisza at length in my previous opinion, and have recommended it as an introduction to fine arts for the novice. That's because its collection of Impressionism and Expressionism is rather easy to comprehend and enjoy.
The third and most famous is the Museo del Prado which covers the earlier periods of Renaissance, Baroque and Rokoko, and culminates in the collection of Spanish masters ...
Advantages: fantastic culture Disadvantages: very much a city
I went to Madrid last week and I really enjoyed it.
Sol is the place to be, where all the shops (of which there are many), bars and clubs are.
A knowledge of the Spanish language is incredibly helpful as very little English is spoken there. However, i found the locals generally friendly.
I would really recommend the Reina Sofia (6 floors of amazing modern art), and Prado art gallery. Other places of interest are: MuseoThyssen-Bornemisza(quite small), Coleccion Permanente del Instituto de Credito Ofifial (contemporary Spanish sculpture and Picassos), Museo de Americs, Museo de Arte Contemporaneo.
The Plaza Mayor is a lovely little square to relax in, where there is a statue of King Phillipe the Third, painted buildings and street artists.
There were lots of fantastic statues, decorative dooways and ornate seats. The city has ...
shinyangel 18.02.2004
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Madrid (Spain)