Guide to the Museo Carmen Thyssen

If you’re a fan of Spanish art, the Museo Carmen Thyssen should go on your list of must-see art museums in Malaga. The three floors showcase all the genres, from early religious art to vanguard 21st-century paintings. Other highlights include the building itself – an fine example of aristocratic architecture in Malaga – the impressive Roman remains in the basement, and a great museum shop.

 Why go to this museum?

This is your must-see if you:

• Are interested in Andalusian art from the 19^th century.
• Fancy a look at traditional Andalusian life as depicted by artists at the time.
• Like Spanish Impressionism.
• Appreciate fine architecture.
• Love the chance to see works from one of the world’s largest private art collections.
• Are a Roman history buff or like an insight into Malaga’s rich past.

Need to know

Location	Calle Compañía 10 (off Plaza de la Constitución)
Opening hours	Tuesday to Sunday 10am to 8pm. Last entry at 7.30pm.
Time to allow	1 to 2 hours for the permanent exhibition, 3-4 if you include the temporary exhibition and the Roman remains
Admission	€12 for the museum only; €15 for the museum and remains
Free entry	Sundays after 4pm
Is the museum accessible?	Yes, completely
Are lockers available for rucksacks?	Yes; you need a €1 coin

Museo Carmen Thyssen – the building

Like other key museums in Malaga, the Museo Carmen Thyssen is housed in one of the city’s finest historic buildings. The 16^th century Palacio de Villalón Palace includes several fine architectural highlights.

Don’t miss:

• The Renaissance entrance
• The central columned patio
• The carved ceilings
• Glimpses of the city rooftops through the windows
• The Neopolitan nativity scene in the patio during December
• The ruins of a 2^nd century Roman villa in the basement.

Museo Carmen Thyssen – the history

The museum opened in 2011 and has since made a name for itself as one of southern Spain’s top museums for Spanish art.

The entire collection is on loan from the private Thyssen collection. Put together by Carmen Thyssen and her late husband, Baron Thyssen, it’s widely considered to be one of the world’s largest and most eclectic. A portrait of Carmen Thyssen by Mercedes Lasarte (below) presides the first floor gallery.

Museo Carmen Thyssen – the collection

The permanent collection at this art museum in Malaga contains 230 works, all Spanish and mostly from the 19^th century. It’s the largest exhibition of its kind in the world and one of the museum’s missions is investigation into Spanish art during this period.

Typically Andalusian

The exhibition begins on the ground floor. Many paintings portray bandoleros in Ronda, typical Andalusian village scenes, fiestas and local customs. Expect lots of dancing and festivities and a good dose of bull fights.

This section has a nod to local life too. The ‘Port of Malaga’ by Manuel Barrón y Castillo, painted in 1847, shows a very different city. And no one would recognise the oil painting of a completely deserted and undeveloped Estepona beach with the rock of Gibraltar behind it.

Old Masters

Upstairs – don’t miss the aerial view of the patio from here – jumps back in time. The collection’s oldest works (some date back to the 13^th century) includes angels and a wooden Virgin and Child plus some religious paintings. These include an extraordinary Saint Marina by Zurbarán, 1 of Spain’s finest old masters.

Preciosismo and Naturalism

But the bulk of the first floor collection returns to the 19^th century and looks at preciosismo. Led by Mariano Fortuny, this painting technique explores the finer details in a scene.

Masked balls, bull fights and Andalusian patios dominate in the first section along with several richly-elaborated oil of high society dances.

The other half is dedicated to landscape painting led by Carlos de Haes. Mountains and seascapes dominate. Another local nod comes in the two oil paintings by Guillermo Gómez Gil; one of the Port of Malaga and the other, Dusk over the coast of Malaga.

Fin de siècle

Up on the second floor, the century changes and with it, the style of Spanish painting. Clearly influenced by international genres, the artists in this part of the exhibition look outwards for inspiration.

Paintings are mostly bright and optimistic, and look at both landscapes and everyday life. Highlights include several paintings by Joaquín Sorolla and Zuloaga, two of Spain’s most popular modern artists. Cordoba painter Julio Romero de Torres also puts in an appearance.

Temporary exhibitions

The museum holds two major temporary exhibitions a year plus several smaller ones. So far, they’ve all provided the chance to see excellent art by Spanish artists as well as international. Van Gogh, Hopper, Matisse, Gauguin and Koons have all put in an appearance.

The museum’s website provides full details.

The Roman remains

Like the Picasso Museum, this building has a treasure trove of Roman heritage in its basement, home to a residential and commercial complex. The ruins date from the 1st to 4th centuries AD and showcase the thriving garum (tuna condiment) industry in Malaga during Roman times.

Highlights in this part of the museum include:

• The well-preserved garum preserving vats.
• The Nymphaeum of the Fish fountain.
• The clear layout of the streets and façades.
• The audio and VR guides that bring the remains to life.

You can include a visit to the remains in your museum visit – tickets cost €15 for the two. When you buy your ticket (online or at the ticket office), you choose a time to visit the remains (hourly, 20 people per session). Book ahead if you’re planning to go at the weekend.

Read more about these Roman remains

Shop and café

Like several other art museums in Malaga link, the Museo Carmen Thyssen has an excellent museum shop. It houses a selection of gifts themed around the permanent collection – think umbrellas, ceramics and notebooks – plus a choice of items based on the temporary exhibition.

You can also buy locally-crafted gifts, often themed around Malaga, and t-shirts and prints from the collection. An extensive selection of art books is in the second part of the shop and children’s art gets a good look-in.

The café has a small and pleasant outside patio, and serves good coffee and cakes. There’s also a very reasonable lunchtime menu, available all week including Sundays. You get 10% discount with your museum ticket.

The Museo Carmen Thyssen is just one of the excellent art museums in Malaga. Read our guides to the others:

Centre Pompidou

Picasso Museum

Did you know?

Malaga has well over 30 museums. Read the list of the best and why you should visit them.

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