Thyssen Bornemisza Museum, Madrid

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My primary must-see sites on my visit to Madrid were three art galleries: the Prado, the Renia Sofia, and the Thyssen-Bornesmisza. With the exception of the modern art in the Renia Sophia, I planned to spend several hours in each one.

The Thyssen museum is the result of years of art collecting between a father and son (wealthy barons); I can’t imagine having the ability to purchase this much fine art and personally owning it! It was sold to the country of Spain in 1992 and now is on display for everyone to see; the museum is considered one of the finest and most important private collections in the world.

There are no photos allowed in the Thyssen, but I had done my research and had my list in hand as we ventured into this museum. I was mostly interested in the Renaissance part of the collection, but we did wander around the entire museum and other sections caught my eye. The collection includes more than 1,000 paintings by Italian and Flemish Renaissance artists, as well as Spanish artists and the Impressionists. What I did not realize until we were there was the amount of American and British artworks also on display. And, for the British history fan in me, I was thrilled to see one of the more popular portraits of England’s King Henry VIII and the child portrait of his first wife, Spanish princess Katharine of Aragon.

Well known artists included in the collection include Goya, Picasso, Petrus Christus, Van Gogh, Titian, Rubens, Gauguin, Degas, Cézanne, Duccio, Beckman, Rembrandt, Ghirlandaio, van Eyck, Caravaggio, Hans Holbein the Younger, Dürer, and Dali.

We spent about two hours in the museum going through the two floors. If you are unable to get into the Thyssen, I recommend this virtual Thyssen museum website.

The Thyssen is located across the street from the Prado. While you could see both museums in one day, I recommend you split up your days so you don’t get overloaded and not enjoy either as much as you could.

Unlike the Renia Sophia and the Prado, the Thyssen does not have any free admission days (probably because they have to make up the money the country paid to buy this massive collection!). Admission is €9/person (2013). See their website below for opening hours.

Two years ago I compared here the Prado museum and the Thyssen-Bornemisza museum located on the other side of the avenue.
It seems that this museum, one of the best painting museums in Europe, remains "off the beaten path" for the average tourist visiting Madrid.
If you like paintings don't hesitate to enter the Palace Villahermosa and to visit a quite eclectic, at the origin private, collection of high quality paintings from the barons Heinrich and Hans Thyssen and Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza.
The collection starts at the upper floor with works of the 13th c. On the second floor Italian, Flemish, German and Spanish schools from the 15th to 17th c. On the first floor one finds paintings of the Dutch, French and English schools from the 17th and 18th c.
The 19th c. is interesting because are on display besides impressionist and post-impressionist painters a number of works from North-American painters what is rather exceptional in Europe. The visitor will also find here a large number of German expressionist works.
To end on the ground-floor are works of the European "avant-garde", cubism, abstract art and surrealism.
As you can see the Thyssen-Bornemisza collection covers all painting schools with works of high quality. This variety of genres makes the museum so interesting. I visited it twice and prefer the Thyssen-Bornemisza collection to that of the Prado and certainly to the Reina Sofia collection.

Open: Tuesdays to Sundays from 10 h to 19 h. Closed on Mondays
Closed on 1 January, 1 May and 25 December.

Price (2011): Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection + Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection
General 8.00€
Reduced 5.50€

NEW: From 02 August to 04 September 2011 there is a special exhibition on Religious Paintings from the 14th to the 18th Century.
There will be an interesting special exhibition on "Architectural Paintings" from 18/10/2011 to 22/01/2012.

This museum was about 10 minutes walk from our hostal and we loved it. It had a special exhibition on when we were there entitled "Heroines" which cos money but was well worth it and the 2nd half of the exhibition was at another branch of the museum at San Martin square and that part was free. We thought the museum was quite delightful.Can't remember what it cost but pay and go!

The Museo Thyssen Bornemisza is a perfet compliment to the other two top museums of Madrid, The Prado and the Reina Sofia. Ubicated in a Palace which was formerly home to the Duque of Vallehermosa, it is a Neo-Classical mansion from 1806. Many critics see this museum as the world's most important private art collection, assembled by Baron Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza and his son Hans Heinrich. For several generations, the family collected a large number of works that today are exhibited in this museum. The Spanish state bought it in 1993.

It is said that this museum is the perfect complement to the Prado and Reina Sofía museums, because it bridges the gaps in their respective collections. There are splendid works, dating from the 14th century up to the masterly pop art of the 20th century. This is a wonderful place for a journey through the different "Isms" of art, starting with Impressionism. A new building with 18 rooms, which houses the Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection, has recently been added to the museum. Two of these rooms are used for temporary exhibits.

Some of the most famous paintings that you will be bale to see during your visit to this museum include Cézanne's "Portrait of a Farmer", some of Van Gogh paintings, Picasso's "Man with a Clarinet" and "Harlequin with a Mirror,". Other big names from that century in the surrounding galleries include Miró, Dali, Bacon, and Pollock, whose "Brown and Silver I" is especially worth paying close attention to. The same goes for Edward Hopper's "Hotel Room," seen as a study of urban isolation.

The entry fee to this museum costs 8 Euros and it is free if you are holding the Madrid pass or the paseo de Arte pass

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Known as the ‘artichoke fountain’ because of the artichoke on the top the original of this fountain was designed by Ventura Rodriguez and built in 1781/1782. A reproduction of it is located in the Glorieta de Atocha. The top of the fountain is held up by cherubs.

This museum has a great collection of art. Works of art from the 13th century to present from the permanent collection.

Now there is a temporary exhibition of Henri Matisse. Works of the Interwar period (1917-1941) are exposed.
Untill September 20, 2009

Originally a private collection before being taken over by the state, Baron Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza's collection comprises over 800 paintings. Here we can find exhibits from the 13th century to the present day, and thus follow the most important trends and movements in art over the last few hundred years.

Opening hours :

Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 7pm. Closed Mondays. The ticket office closes at 6:30pm. The Museum is closed on January 1, May 1 and December 25. The Museum will be open from 10am to 3pm on December 24 and 31.

Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection + Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection
General 6.00 €
Reduced 4.00 €

* Temporary Exhibition
General 5.00 €
Reduced 3.50 €

* Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection + Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection + Temporary Exhibition
General 9.00 €
Reduced 5.00 €

* Contexts of the Permanent Collection
Free Entry

REDUCED:
Senior Citizens (over 65) and Students with ID.
FREE:
Under 12s accompanied by an adult.

To think that the paintings displayed in this museum were actually part of a private collection is absolutely mind-blowing! Baron Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza had a passion for the arts, and luckily for him he had enough money to sustain this passion. Starting in the 1920s, he began acquiring classical paintings, and upon his death in 1947, his youngest son Hans started adding to the collection, and his wife Carmen soon followed suit. The result is a stunning collection that covers eight centuries of European and American paintings, with examples from all the major artistic movements that have evolved throughout the years. Carmen Cervera (Miss Spain 1961) was instrumental in transferring the collection to Madrid. The museum opened in 1992, and a wing was added in 2004 to house the Thyssen-Bornemisza family's 1500 paintings.

I spent about 5 hours at the Thyssen but I could easily have spent more. The museum is organized in chronological order, which basically turns the visit into an art history lesson! Opening hours are 10:00 am to 7:00 pm every day (closed on Mondays). Admission: 6 Euros.

The Thyssen Museum is situated in the restored 18th century Palacio de Villahermosa near the Prado. Contains more than 800 paintings, sculptures, carvings and tapestries, ranging from primitive Flemish works to contemporary pieces. Among the highlights are works by Renoir, Durer and Van Eyck. From 9th of October til 6th of Jan 08 there is an Dürer and Cranach exposition, is very nice and i liked so much.

El Museo Thyssen está situado en el restaurado Palacio de Villahermosa del siglo XVIII en el conocido triangulo de los museos. Contiene mas de 800 pinturas, esculturas, tallas y tapices. Entre lo mas destacado se encunentran trabajos de Renoir, Durer and Van Eyck. Del 9 de Octubre hasta el 6 de Enero de 2008 hay una exposición de Dürer y Cranach que forma parte de la exposición temporal.

This museum exists in Madrid since about 15 years. The paintings previously were the private collection of Hans-Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza, later the personal collection of his wife, Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza was added. You should start on 2nd floor with paintings of the 14th and 15th century, like for example the portrait of Giovanna Tornabuoni by Ghirlandaio. On ground floor you find some vanguard modern paintings. Entrance fee was EUR 6. There is an extra fee if you want to see the current exhibitions, like right now Van Gogh and Richard Estes. The museum closes at 7 p.m, ticket counters sell tickets till 6:30 p.m. A visit to Thyssen-Bornemisza will take you about 2 hours!