Días de los museos
The time had come… museums. It was mid-week, less going on… no more carousing in the sun all day. It’s time to get cultured. The Picasso Museum was the first (and perhaps obvious), choice. I had tried going earlier in the week, but the line was rather long… time I felt could be better spent. Down the street was a ceramic art/kitchenware shop. Kind of a tourist thing, but it was nicely crafted, hand made by local artists cermamics. I’m not really big on souvenirs, as I’ve been trying to declutter my life, but if there’s something I like and it’s locally made, I might justify it to myself… so I got an ashtray and an incense burner, both of which I needed anyway. I was actually able to maintain a conversation in Spanish with the shop owner about some of the different ceramics, and a conversation about when the best time to come back to go to the museum when the line wasn’t so long. Woo! It’s getting better… Now I just need to go spend some time somewhere that they speak only Spanish, no English, and see how I fare…
But I digress. So I came back another day, earlier. Still a bit of a line, but not too bad. This was, after all, Picasso2006BCN… uh.. yeah… apparently an homage to the artist on the centenary his first return from Paris. I went with the combination ticket, entrance to both the permanent and exhibition collections (about €9,50 I think). I’m a big fan of cubism, the style which most people associate with Picasso, but I know it’s definitely not everyone’s bag. But I’m an avante-funky kinda guy, so I dig it. What I didn’t realize, however, was that cubism was really a fairly small percentage of all of Picasso’s work. Much of his earlier pieces are actually quite “normal” in comparison. His post-cubist work still maintains a fairly high level of abstract ideas, but there was also a bit of a return to classicism.
In addition to the art, the building itself is rather interesting (I seem to find myself saying that often about Barcelona.) Spanish gothic style, with arched and pillared alcoves and the typical incorporation of open area plazas.
The next place to catch my interest was the Museu d’Història de la Ciutat (€4). Set in one of the old buildings in the Barrio Gòtic area (that I had passed on several occasions, wondering what could be inside…) The museum concentrates on the historical development of Barcelona, showing the changes that occurred as different civilizations gained control. What I was particularly interested in seeing, though, was the Roman and Visigoth ruins that had been uncovered below. The remains of the city as it once stood were in place… well, as much as could be… Some walls and walkways were still standing, but, perhaps more importantly from an archaelogical standpoint, was the layout of where everything in the city was was still intact. Some areas were shown as being housing, while others were various craftsman shops, or winemakers with some of the fermentation pottery still in place, as well as the chapel areas. It was difficult to visualize how some of this looked in its heyday, but there were also some renderings shown to help. Once leaving the underground ruins, there was more artifacts to be seen, as well as getting to see the inside of the cathedral of the building that now stands on the site.
The next day I ventured to Monjuïc, the mountain on the south side of the city by the harbor. I wasn’t quite sure how to get to the top, and damned if I was going to try to find out by reading the LP or asking someone, so I just headed in the direction and hoped for the best. I ended up on a road meant for cars that wound up the side, and while it inevitably ended up not being the most efficient way to the top, it did give me some views of the industrial shipping harbor and cool foliage growing on the side.
From there, I walked through the gardens where they were filming something… TV show or movie… I tried to stay out of the way as I attempted to find the Castell de Monjuïc, which also housed a military museum. I was more interested in seeing the castle, but it was only €1 for the museum, so I checked it out as well. On display was a lot of, you guessed it, military things. Guns, heavy artillery, uniforms, flags, military influence pop art, etc. The castle itself wasn’t particularly impressive, except that there was a fantastic view of all Barcelona below, that photography could just not do justice without a panoramic shot.
I headed down the road to the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya, featuring Catalan-specific art. Entrance was €8,50 for both the permanent and temporary collections, and included an audio guided tour. And the ticket was good for two days. I’m not sure if that’s always the case, or because I arrived only two hours before closing. The building itself is a treat to look at, but inside in a large domed room is also a rather impressive pipe organ. I started with taking the audio tour, which began in old Romanesque art. Lots of it centered around Christianity and the art found in churches and cathedrals. The Catalan art of this period seems very distinct to me, particularly the depiction of people and faces. I continued with the audio tour for a while, but since I only had two hours and was undecided whether I’d be returning the next day or not, I decided to move a bit more quickly, only using the audio guide for pieces that particularly interested me. I was more anxious to get to the modern art. The exhibit I enjoyed the most was the photography wing. There were some good shots that I thought helped exemplify life in various European contexts, as well as some nice collage stylings.
So, the next day being my last in Barcelona, I had thought I’d like to spend one more day bumming around the beach. Unfortunately, the last couple days had been the shitty weather days. It wasn’t too bad this day, but still a bit overcast and chilly. I would have really liked to go into the Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona in La Raval area, but my feet just weren’t feeling up to spending another day walking around it. I hung around outside, where there was a bit of an arty-student vibe, with the university being just around the corner. I sat outside and watched the skateboarders for a while before heading back towards the gothic district, where I found a Dalí exhibit in the Reial Cercle Artístic building. I had passed earlier in the week. I really like Dalí’s work, so I went in. It was a small, but dense, exhibit. There were lots of pieces of his illustration work, particularly from Don Quixote, other paintings and drawings, and also many of his sculptures. Dalí was a strange man. He scream eccentricism. A man I’d have liked to meet. At the end of the exhibit was a recreation of a piece Dalí did. I can’t remember what it was for… but it’s brilliant.
And I think I’m going to grow my mustache out like Dalí… freakin excellent…
Tags: Barcelona, catalan, Dali, Europe, museum, Spain, Travel
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