(Drivebycuriosity) - Many visitors of Madrid go just to the Prado and no other museum. I think this is a mistake. My wife and I used our recent stay in the Spanish capital to visit the Prado & three other museums. The Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum was our clear favorite (museo).
We loved this place because its collection has a huge variety and spreads from the 16th century to the 21th century. So we could see a fascinating mixture of classical masterpieces with iconic modern & contemporary art. And we spotted many of our favorite artists.
The museum in the center of Madrid - and close to the Prado - got his name from its founder, baron Thyssen-Bornemisza, the heir of an German industrial empire. He used his wealth to amass an impressive art collection, which is now shown at the Madrid museum with his name. I am impressed by TB`s taste and observed the collection with awe. I display here some of my favorites from this gorgeous place, a very subjective selection as usual.
Above you can see Tintoretto`s "Annunciation to the Wife of Manoah" (1555) followed by Francois Clout`s "La Carta Amorosa" (1570) & Mattia Preti´s "A Concert" (1630).
Above Caravagio`s "Saint Catherine of Alexandria"(1597) followed by Palma e Viejo`s "Portrait of a young Woman (La Bella)" (1525); Hans Baldung Grien`s "Portrait of a Woman" (1530) & Juan de Flandes`"Portrait of an Infanta (Catherine of Aragon?)" (1496).
"Reclining Nymph" by Lucas Cranach (1530) & "Venus and Mars" by Carlo Saraceni (1600).
"Bathers" by Emile Bernard was painted already in the year 1889 but it looks like a Picasso from the early 20th century. Did Picasso & others learn from this painting? The painting is followed by more "Bathers". This one is by Jean Metzinger (1905) and would fit into the hippie era of the late 1960s.
Erotic Tension
The scene above shows a lot of erotic tension. Who is seducing whom? "The Prints" by Henri Manguin (1905).
I really love Edward Hopper`s maritime scene: "The ´Martha mcKeen` of Welfleet" (1944).
Aren`t these expressionists beautiful? Arthur Segal`s "Still-Life with Candle-Holder and Box" (1925/26 ) followed by August Macke´s "Circus" (1913); Reginald Marsh´s "The Past of "The Battery" (1926) & Max Beckman´s "Quappi in Pink Jumper" (1932/34).
Thyssen Bornemiza also had purchased one of Edward Hopper`s most iconic works: "Hotel Room" (1931, Oil on canvas. 152.4 x 165.7 cm). Maybe the crown of TB`s collection.
Dreaming Of Tigers
These powerful abstracts also caught my eye: "The Machine Drill" by the surrealist Frantisek Kupka (1927/29) & "Pictorial Architectonic" by Llubov Popova (1918), member of the Russian avantgardists.
TB also got Salvador Dali`s masterpiece "Dream caused by the Flight of a Bee around a Pomegranate a Secon before Waking up" (1944). Bravo!
Pablo Picasso`s iconic "Harlequin with a Mirror" (1923) doesn`t need any comments.
Hans Hartung`s gorgeous abstract "Untitled (Renate Series)" (1965) is way underrated
"Smyrna Greek (Nicos)" by Ronald B. Kitaj (1976/77) also belong to the undervalued gems.
On one wall we could Francis Bacon and his late lover Julian Freud side by side: Bacon´s "Portrait of George Dyer in a Mirror" (1968) & Freud´s "Large Interior. Paddington" (1968/69).
Richard Lindner´s colorful "Moon over Alabama" (1963) is an eye cookie as well.
I believe Robert Rauschenberg`s fascinating collage "Express" (1963) has also to be seen in detail.
Above "Woman in the Mirror" by Paul Delvaux" (1936) followed by "Solitary and Conjugal Trees" by Max Ernst (1942); "Time and Again" by Yves Tanguy (1942) & "Double Eclipse" by Guillermo Kuitca (2013).
Enjoy!
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