The Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga is the quieter, gentler companion to the Picasso Museum, and it rewards anyone who wants to see the Andalusia that painters of the nineteenth century fell in love with. It is housed in the Palacio de Villalón, a Renaissance palace with a stone façade and a pretty inner courtyard on Calle Compañía, a few steps from Calle Larios and the Plaza de la Constitución. The core of the collection comes from the private holdings of Carmen Cervera, the Baroness Thyssen-Bornemisza, and it focuses on Spanish art from the romantic period through to the early twentieth century. Many of the pictures show the south itself: sunlit coastal views, mountain villages, market scenes, Gypsy dancers, bullfights, religious processions and portraits of women in mantillas. Alongside the Andalusian school you will find names that most visitors know, among them Joaquín Sorolla, Ramón Casas, Ignacio Zuloaga, Mariano Fortuny and the Córdoba painter Julio Romero de Torres, whose sensual and melancholic portraits are among the most recognisable images of the region. The palace also contains traces of earlier buildings on the site, and temporary exhibitions in the lower galleries broaden the picture with themes from Spanish and European art.
How to see it
Follow the permanent collection in the order the rooms suggest, starting with the early nineteenth-century romantic landscapes and the costumbrista scenes of everyday Andalusian life, then moving on to the realists and the turn-of-the-century painters in the later rooms. Give yourself time with the large canvases, because many of them tell a story, and pause in the courtyard, which is a calm spot to sit between galleries. The museum is not large, so you can see the main rooms in about an hour without feeling rushed, or stay for ninety minutes if you add the temporary exhibition.
What to expect
This is a small, calm museum, and it is rarely as crowded as the better-known sights nearby, which makes it a good choice for the late morning when the Alcazaba and the Picasso Museum are at their busiest. Explanatory panels are provided in English as well as Spanish, and an audio guide is usually available at the desk.
The galleries are air-conditioned, which helps on a hot afternoon, and the building has lifts for visitors who cannot use stairs. Like many Spanish museums it closes one day a week, usually Monday, so check the days before you plan your route. Photography rules differ between rooms and exhibitions, so follow the signs.
Making the most of it
The museum fits easily into a morning in the old town. Walk here after the cathedral, which is only a few minutes away, then continue to the Picasso Museum for a contrast between nineteenth-century romanticism and twentieth-century invention. If you are travelling with children, a short visit works best, with a game of spotting the dancers, the horses and the bullfighters in the paintings.
Art lovers who plan to see several museums in a day should consider booking tickets in advance so that they can move from one to the next without queuing, and anyone interested in Andalusian painting should leave time for the gift shop, which has good postcards and books on the artists.
For lunch, the lanes around Calle Granada and the Plaza de la Constitución are lined with tapas bars and cafés within a minute or two of the entrance.
What to expect
The experience
A self-guided visit through the permanent collection of nineteenth-century Spanish painting, with a temporary exhibition in the lower galleries of a Renaissance palace.
Best time
Late morning or early afternoon, when the busier old-town sights have their peak crowds.
How long
About an hour for the permanent collection, or ninety minutes with the temporary show.
Tips
Check the weekly closing day, take the audio guide if it is offered and finish with a coffee in the courtyard.
Quick picks
- Best for
- Art lovers who enjoy romantic landscapes, Andalusian life and painters such as Sorolla and Romero de Torres.
- Families
- A short, calm visit suits older children, especially if you turn the paintings into a spotting game.
- Couples
- An unhurried cultural hour in a palace courtyard, followed by tapas in the nearby lanes.
- Pair with
- The Picasso Museum and Málaga Cathedral, both a short walk away.
- Time needed
- About one to one and a half hours.
Good questions
What can you see at the Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga?+
The collection focuses on Spanish painting of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, with many Andalusian landscapes, scenes of daily life, dancers and bullfighters. Artists include Sorolla, Casas, Zuloaga, Fortuny and Romero de Torres.
Where is the Carmen Thyssen Museum?+
It is in the Palacio de Villalón on Calle Compañía, in the old town a few steps from Calle Larios and the Plaza de la Constitución area. The cathedral and the Picasso Museum are both within about five to ten minutes on foot.
How long does a visit take?+
Most visitors spend about an hour on the permanent collection. Add up to half an hour more if you want to see the temporary exhibition and sit for a while in the courtyard.
Is the museum open every day?+
Like many Spanish museums it closes for one day each week, usually Monday, and may have shorter hours on some public holidays. Check the days and times before you plan your route.
Is it worth visiting if I am also seeing the Picasso Museum?+
Yes, because the two are very different. The Carmen Thyssen shows the romantic and realist Andalusia of the nineteenth century, while the Picasso Museum follows one artist through the twentieth century.
