Since its inception in 1990, the Museo Reina Sofia has always been viewed as a cultural center where art retells the history of Spain and gives insight into its future. The 20,000-piece collection focuses primarily on Spanish artists from the 20th century, but you’ll find a number of groundbreaking pieces from international artists like Vasily Kandinsky and Sarah Grilo.
The star of the museum is Pablo Picasso’s Guernica, a powerful oil painting depicting the horrors of the Spanish Civil War. Reina Sofia’s other signature exhibition of includes the works of Salvador Dalí.
Founded in 1992, the Reina Sofía covers the periods that are not examined in the Prado Museum. The earliest work of art is from 1881, the same year Pablo Picasso was born.
The building where the museum is currently housed was previously used as a hospital, Hospital de San Carlos, constructed at the end of the 18th century.
Collection
The Reina Sofía features a large collection of paintings by renowned twentieth-century Spanish artists like Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí and Joan Miró. The museum’s most famous composition is Picasso’s “Guernica”, one of the most effective anti-war paintings in the world, although a large number of his works can be found in the Picasso museum in Malaga.
The art fans will need several hours to explore the Reina Sofía, due to its sheer size. If you are less enthusiastic about art, it will take you approximately between one and two hours to see the most renowned paintings and sculptures.