The Thyssen-Bornemisza was opened to the public in 1992 to house what was at that point the world’s most important private art collection, acquired one year later by the Spanish State. Along with the Museo del Prado and the Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum forms the so-called Paseo del Arte or Art Walk: an extraordinary group of institutions comprising the three great, national museums located in the heart of Madrid. The holdings of the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, housed in the historic Palacio de Villahermosa, are particularly complementary to those of the other two museums: its Old Masters enrich the Prado’s collection, while its modern and contemporary works complete the survey offered by the Reina Sofía. The Museum has a total collection of more than 1,000 paintings (including those of the recently-added Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection), offering a complete overview of the history of European art from its beginnings in the 13th century to the end of the 20th century. There is a particular emphasis on periods and movements little represented in other Spanish museums, such as Spanish and Netherlandish Primitives, the German Renaissance, 17th-century Dutch painting, Impressionism, German Expressionism, Russian Constructivism, geometrical abstraction and Pop Art. |