I donât know about your travelling habits, but I like to visit the local art museum whenever I happen to be in a place for the first time. That is, at least one of them. But Barcelona is a bit different than other places, so I can totally understand if, coming here for a city break or a holiday, you donât have enough time for everything: getting that perfect tan, hitting the posh rooftop bars, checking all the GaudĂs off your list AND visit the tenths of interesting museums? Yeah, I know, impossible!
But fear no more, dear traveller, because thereâs plenty of free art, and Iâm talking fine Catalan quality, literally in your face!
Right outside the airport thereâs this 50 meter-long ceramic mural on the wall of Terminal 2. Joan MĂro, the Barcelona-born artist, created this impressive mural in collaboration with ceramicist Josep Llorens in 1970 and donated to the city.
Actually, MĂroâs idea, as an homage to Barcelona, was to welcome all travellers, no matter how they arrive in the city: by air, by sea or by land.
Letâs say you come by sea (and how cool is that?!), right on La Rambla, very close to La Boqueria, on Pla de lâOs, thereâs a circular mosaic from 1976 youâll probably step on without even realizing itâs a piece of art. Thatâs no problem, it is what the artist actually wanted, for passers-by to walk over it.
If we move further, in Parc Joan MĂro, close to Plaça España, thereâs no way you can miss a giant sculpture called Dona i Ocell (Woman and Bird), a recurring theme in the artistâs work. This is supposed to greet those arriving in the city by car and it was opened to the public in 1983.
You canât help noticing there are lots (LOTS!) of graffitis in Barcelona, but did you know one of the first - and still standing - belongs to Picasso? In 1955, the College of Architects of Catalonia and the Balearic Islands inaugurated a new building which features friezes designed by Pablo Picasso and executed by the Norwegian artist Carl Nesjar. It stands right in front of the Barcelona Cathedral and it has a very good, atypical souvenir shop on the ground floor. (Youâre welcome!)
And since we mentioned Picasso, letâs not move too far. Homenatge a Picasso (Tribute to Picasso) is a sculpture created by another famous Catalan artist, Antoni TĂ pies. He was commissioned the work by the Barcelona city council in order to commemorate the centenary of Picassoâs birth in 1881. You can admire the sculpture on Passeig de Picasso, the avenue that separates El Born neighbourhood from Ciutadella Park.
These are only a few of the works of art you can admire for free, and I only mentioned local artists, but you wonât want to stop here, there are plenty more, because, yes! many of them artists loved this city: thereâs Fernando Boteroâs huge cat sculpture in Raval, Frank Gehryâs fish right by the sea, Keith Haringâs mural next to The Museum of Contemporary Art or Roy Lichtensteinâs Barcelona Face in Port Vell, and so on.
Oh, and just remember that most museums are free on the first Sunday of the month and all Sunday afternoons, so maybe check one out before you meet your friends for a glass of vermouth?
(photos from www.elprat.cat, barcelonaturisme.com, ajuntament.barcelona.cat, catalunya.com )
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