The Madrid museum series - Thyssen Bornemisza museum

The Thyssen was my favourite museum of the ones I went to in Madrid. And it has an interesting history. This museum showcases paintings collected by the Thyssen-Bornemisza family over the years, one of the largest personal art collections in the world. Even though the Baron was German and wanted to have the display in Germany itself, it ended up shifting to Spain, in the 1990s. Of course, the fact that he was married to a Spanish woman had a part to play in it 😜.  

(You can see the museum in 360 view here)

The museum houses some 1600 paintings, some of which the Spanish government bought from the family and the rest are loaned to the museum for a couple of years at a time. Since it is a personal collection, the pieces here span from pre-renaissance times all the way up to modern artists of the 20th century. And the display provides a sort of highlight of the painting styles over the centuries.

Galleries of Thyssen

The museum is spread over three floors with paintings up to the Renaissance period on the top floor, 1600s to 1900s on the middle floor and modern art on the ground floor. I spent about 2.5 hours walking through the rooms and could only cover the middle and ground floors during this time, from the post-renaissance and modern ages. I was already overwhelmed by the amazing pieces by then and don't think I could have explored more after. 

I spent a lot of time studying the paintings and their styles, and was blown away by some of them. The minute detailing, the accurate lighting and the reality of some of the pieces was mind-blowing. I just stood and stared at some of them for long, appreciating all the effort the artist had put into them to create the gorgeous pieces. Even though I generally prefer landscapes, there were a few still life paintings which drew me to them immediately. They were so realistically painted, they looked more like a photograph than a painting.

The modern section did not have the same effect on me though. I liked a few but I feel they all need a bit more time and understanding to appreciate them. And I am not at that stage yet.

I photographed some of the paintings that I liked. I am sharing a few of them, the style and eras they are from plus a brief description of the highlights of those paintings for me.


DUTCH LANDSCAPES (1600s)

Issac van Ostade - Traveller
at cottage door (1649)

I started my museum tour on the middle floor which housed post-renaissance art from the 16th century, starting with landscapes. In the 1600s, it was the Dutch artists who had started painting landscapes. The detailing and play with the lighting was the highlight of these works. 

The Dutch painters were one of the first ones to showcase the lives of the common people, going about their daily lives. Like farming, carrying their goods, spending the evenings in the local inn and so on. These paintings played a lot with light, to give it the feel of being realistic. They all used very strong colours, and a lot of green for the plants and the forests. The detailing of the people was exquisite. I am sharing one here as an example, which I liked. 

Seeing these paintings I realised that you can do a lot more with oil paints, as compared to water colours. Also, knowing how to use light correctly in paintings is what makes them realistic. This is something that I am still learning and a long way off from where I need to be. But at least I realised where I need to get to 😊.


DUTCH STILL LIFE (1600s)

William Kalf - Still life
with Chinese vase (1662)

After the Dutch landscapes, there were a few still live paintings, again by the Dutch which made me stop in my tracks, they were so realistic! I liked William Kalf's still lives. There was this one painting of his - Still life with Chinese vase, Nautilius cup and Other Objects - where it felt like the men and women sculptures on the Chinese porcelain vase were almost coming out of the painting, it looked so completely 3D. You can feel this only when you see this painting in real life. 

Jan Treck - Still life with
glass of wine (1605)

Another painting by Jan Jansz Treck, called Still life with Glass of Wine, Pewter and Other Objects fascinated me. Looking at it, it felt like the pewter was actually shining in the light, so clear were all the reflections on it and all the other things kept next to it. Another piece you have to see to believe.






BRITISH AND AMERICAN ARTISTS (1800s)

Jasper Cropsey - Greenwood Lake (1870)

Following the section on Dutch artists, were a few paintings of famous American and British artists. The ones which I remember from this section are mostly landscapes. And they were stunning. There were a few of them with stood out for me. The first one was Cropsey's Greenwood Lake. It is the painting of a lake and its surroundings in New York, during fall colours. The colours, the light and the detailing is stunning. I almost stopped in my tracks when I saw it and kept staring at it for sometime. There was a brightness emanating from it which was captivating.

In the same section was my favourite painting of the day, Inness' Summer days. This is the one painting from this museum that I would love to own. 

George Inness - Summer days
 (1857)

William Harnet - Materials
for a Leisure Hour (1879)

The light and brightness of paintings always attracts me, and that doesn't seem to change! These paintings were all in Room 29 and I found them all stunning. In the same section. there was a still life called Materials for a Leisure Hour, by William Harnet which I found very realistic. If you look at it, it looks like the smoke was really coming out of the pipe, in front of the painting.



IMPRESSIONISM (Late 1800s)

Camille Pissarro - Orchard
at Erogny (1896)

There were many rooms which had impressionist paintings as well as some post impressionism ones. Most of them were smaller in size than the rest. And even though similar, you could see many different styles there. There were of course the greats like Pissarro, Monet, Renoir. and Alfred Sisley. But a lot of smaller and lesser known artists too. And each had their own styles to appreciate. 

William Metcalf -
The picnic (1907)

I think impressionist paintings need a lot of time and patience to appreciate each of them. And you always need to experience them yourself in real. No photograph or description can do them full justice. When you are close to these paintings, all you see are overlapping brushstrokes in contrasting colours and opposing directions, as if it is all meaningless chaos. But as you step away from each, every feet you move away, something new comes into view, becomes clear. And then each brush stroke starts to make sense. Its a journey you need to go on, for each of these pieces.

I spent some time on a few paintings and here they are. Though, at this distance, you still can't make out what they really depict. But when you walk away, you will. By the way, looking at these, I can also see a pattern in all the paintings I like, they all have people walking in nature 😊. It is a very interesting observation for me...

Camille Pissarro - Woods at
Marly (1871)

Renoir - Woman with a
parasol (1875)

William Chase - In
the park (1889)

In the same sections, I came across this one painting by William Chase, called In the park which is quite unlike the others. I loved this one because the road in it is so realistic, it feels just like a photograph. I actually checked it closely a few times as I just could not believe it was not one!





EXPRESSIONISM (1900s)

After impressionism came a few expressionism paintings from different parts of the world which were very different. They were bright and loud, the brightness I liked but not the loudness. And they all make some points, none of the messaging being simple. They are just too complicated and I couldn't relate to most of them. There was one room with many German expressionism paintings, a few of them I did stop and stare at for a bit. And each painting felt like a unique piece. But I felt very lost there too.

A few of these did make sense to me. Like this one by Stepanova, called Billiard players. The colours and the shapes are saying something. And the Fishing and Young Couple one. I don't think I get them still but at least I liked them.

Varvara Stepanova - Billiard players (1920)

Natalia Goncharova -
Fishing (1909)

Heinrich Campendoch -
Young Couple (1915)

MODERN ART (1900s) 

Juan Gris - the
Smoker (1913) 

And then on the ground floor, there was a whole section on modern and abstract art which just went over my head. The largest section were cubist paintings, plus there were a lot of Picassos and Dalis here. Most of them felt too complex, too intense, and too confusing to understand them. They just required too much effort to like them too 😝. And by that time, I had got art-exhausted too. I still walked through and liked a few Delauneys and Richard Estes.

Max Weber - Grand
Central (1915)

Some pieces spoke to me, but most didn't. I am sharing two here, which I was able to make some sense of. The Grand Central cubist painting started to make sense to me. But honestly, I was too tired to care by that time. I think it needs a much more concentrated and concerted effort from my side to get these paintings. I could see the attraction these would have but more often than not, I still get drawn to the earlier landscapes and brighter paintings more. Maybe some day, things may change. Or maybe not!





Overall, I loved this museum and the art here. What I enjoyed the most was being able to see different styles over the ages, to see how art evolved over the years. Plus there was a lot of variety too given it was a personal collection. I loved my time here and can see myself going there again some day...