Museu Picasso

Executive summary by darmansjah

The Museu Picasso located in Barcelona, Spain, houses one of the most extensive collections of artworks by the 20th-century Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. With more than 3,500 works by the painter, the museum has the most complete collection of works. The museum is housed in five adjoining medieval palaces in Barcelona's La Ribera and is located on Montcada Street in the (Bank District) of Barcelona. It opened to the public on March 9 in 1963,[ becoming the first museum dedicated to Picasso's work and the only one created during the artist's life. It has since been declared a (museum of national interest) by the Government of Catalonia.

Highlights of the collection include two of his first major works, The First Communion (1896), and Science and Charity (1897). In particular, the Museu Picasso reveals Picasso's relationship with the city of Barcelona, a relationship that was shaped in his youth and adolescence, and continued until his death.

The Museu Picasso occupies five large houses or palaces of the Calle Montcada Barcelona, dating from the 13th century and 14th century, occupying a total area of 10,628 sqm. The buildings follow the style of Gothic civil Catalan. Each of the 5 buildings are built following a similar pattern, around a patio equipped with an exterior staircase that allows access to the main floors. The buildings that house the collection of Picasso's works also have their own history.

The permanent collection is organized into three sections: painting and drawing, engraving, and ceramics. These cover principally the early years of Picasso’s artistic life, such as his Blue Period from 1901 to 1904, but Picasso, his family, and his friends would bequest or loan other later pieces as well. There are now more than 3,500 works making up the permanent collection of the museum.

The collection is organized into areas that include the early years (Málaga, Corunna and Barcelona, 1890–97), the training period (Barcelona, Horta de San Juan and Madrid, 1897–1901), the Blue Period (1901–04), works in Barcelona from 1917, and the entire Las Meninas(1957) series. Most of the paintings on display at the museum are from the period between 1890 and 1917, an important collection in regard to that portion of Picasso's life. The museum has very few paintings after 1917, with the exception of the Las Meninas, painted in 1957. The collection of lithographs comprises the years 1962 and 1982. Picasso himself gave the museum a copy of each of his works produced after the death of Sabartés in 1968. The collection also includes illustrations made by the artist for various books, as well as ceramics gifted to the museum by Picasso's widow, Jacqueline.

Between 2009 and 2010 the museum began making information on the permanent collection public on their website. As of October 2010, over 65% of the museum's collection was available to view online.