The museum is open Tuesday to Friday, 10 am to 8 pm. Entry costs € 6 or € 8.50 if you choose to see the temporary exhibition as well. You can get in half-price to the main museum if you have the Barcelona card (public transport card). You can get in free on the first Sunday of the month, but I suspect it would be very busy then. Perhaps this opportunity should be left for the people of Barcelona to enjoy, as they probably already pay for the upkeep of this museum through their local taxes. This museum has a lift and wheelchairs available for people with limited mobility. Website: http://www.museupicasso.bcn.es/eng/index_eng.htm
~The museum itself~ ************************
The buildings the collection is housed in are remarkable in their own right. The La Ribera district is one of the oldest in the city and is enjoying a bit of a revival at the moment. It conceals many places of interest, and in the Carrer de Montcada you can find the five beautiful mediaeval palaces that make up the museum. These are very fine example of the architecture of the 13th and 14th centuries, beautifully renovated and joined together. They reminded me a bit of Italy (well, I've never been, but that's how I imagine Italy to be…). Remember to look up from time to time during the visit to admire the original painted ceilings. If you want to know more about the history of the houses and the people who lived there, there is a lot of information on the museum website.
~The collection~ *******************
Works by Picasso are present in museums all over the world. In fact, so prolific was he as an artist that there is more than one Picasso museum. I haven't visited any of the others, but what makes this one special for me is that many of the works on display were donated by Picasso himself, by his wife and one of his friends. Picasso was born in Málaga in 1881 but the family moved to Barcelona when he was 10, and despite having left for Paris in 1904 after several visits to the French capital, the Catalan city remained dear to his heart.
The other nice thing about the collection is the progression through Picasso's work, aptly starting with a brilliant set of his early work, which is very relevant as most of it was painted in Barcelona. There is a huge variety of works from this period, from portrait to landscape through to newspaper-style caricatures and touchingly some of the artist's sketch-books. It makes you realise just how immense and precocious the genius of the man was. One painting in particular stays in my mind, the man in a beret, painted in 1895 (picture 1 below). Go and look at it and then do the sum… That's right, he painted this when he was only 14 years old! The technical expertise is astounding, but most of all it is such a mature work. Two other noteworthy paintings are a portrait of his mother and the beach at Barceloneta.
The visit then takes you to works from his blue period, painted during a difficult time in the still young man's life. The material difficulties he experienced, far from his family, as well as the suicide of his friend Carles Casagemas, have been seen as the underlying reason to the melancholic quality of his work. Some of it may seem a little sentimental even, but he was only a young man when he painted this. (See an example in picture 2)
So far, so good, but perhaps a little predictable. Until you come to what has to be the real high spot of this museum. In 1957, Picasso donated a series of paintings, 58 in total, inspired by the famous Velázquez painting of the same name (picture 3). A great admirer of Velázquez, Picasso set about interpreting Las Meninas in his own unique manner. The series comprises an extraordinary monochrome painting of the whole scene (picture 4), as well as smaller paintings of parts of the original painting (picture 5). Before you enter the room where these paintings are, you will have the opportunity to watch a short audio-visual presentation comparing Picasso's work with the original. This is done beautifully and I recommend you spend a little time looking at that, as it will help you understand and appreciate Picasso' work.
There is also a set of frankly pornographic drawings by Picasso, more novelty value than artistic, although a school-group of teenagers seemed to find them highly instructive!
Picasso's widow, Jacqueline, donated a set of beautiful and sometimes amusing ceramics. Picasso was indeed multi-talented, and these are really amazing. Many of them are plates, but with the food already on! (Picture 6)
~My overall feeling~ **********************
If you like Picasso and find yourself in Barcelona, you MUST go and visit this museum. If you are not a big fan, I think you would still enjoy the visit, if only to check out the museum buildings. The works presented here are extremely varied, and you are almost guaranteed to see something you like. And, who knows, you might even be won over by this energetic and joyful collection.
~Other Picasso related visits~ *********************************
This museum will perhaps make you want to see more of Picasso's works. You could always have a meal at Els Quatre Gats (the 4 cats), where he used to hang out with his contemporaries, or visit the museu de ceràmica which houses 16 pieces.
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