Art Galore: Munch, Bonnard and Koudelka

It is one of the season’s most popular exhibitions and it can be seen at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum until January 17^th 2016. We are talking about Edvard Munch. Archetypes, about the figure of the author of one of the most famous paintings in the history of art, The Scream. However, those in search for this specific work of art will leave disappointed since it is not there, unlike those who are looking to discover other stages of this artist who was a contemporary of Cézanne or Van Gogh.

The exhibition allows visitors to see the rich universe of the artist and admire paintings that were leading to that masterpiece, paintings such as The Storm, where we see a series of women putting their hands on their face, in the same way that the distressed character in The Scream does. Another painting is Women on the bridge, which may reminisce of the structure of the aforementioned painting although in a more colourful, lively and bright way, which makes it hard to believe that Munch was in fact its author. Naked portraits, landscapes and sketches complete this interesting immersion into the world of this Nordic artist. Tickets are 11 euros for adults and 7 euros for concessions.

Less than 5 minutes away by foot are the two headquarters of the Mapfre Foundation, both of which with their own exhibitions. In the exhibition room of Paseo de Recoletos, 23 -20 minutes away on foot from our hotel in the center of Madrid– you can enjoy a retrospective dedicated to the artist Pierre Bonnard, one of the lesser known artists of that time frame between the 19^th and 20^th centuries; known as le nabi très japoniste, in 1888 he founded this movement, the Nabi Group, which means ‘prophets’ in Hebrew. There are paintings of great Japanese inspiration and also paintings of a large scale like those of the series Et in arcadia ego, which reflect the embryo of the welfare society that was being created in France back in the early 1900s. It is the nude portraits that are of special interest, especially that “game” between the artist and the model, which he carried out with his wife Martha, who he portrayed in very sensual poses to say the very least. It is also interesting to see the miniature photographs that he took before painting her. Enjoy this exhibition until January 16^th 2016. Entry is free.

And we finish this art treble with another exhibition of the Mapfre Foundation, at Calle Bárbara de Braganza, 13. This exhibition is dedicated to a live artist, Josef Koudelka (b. 1938, Moravia, Czechoslovakia). Considered a nomad by himself, as he was never comfortable under the stiff rules of communism, his eye learned how to capture the people’s personalities, not just from the gypsy communities (which were his favourite) but also in his series in different countries (Spain, France, Ireland, Germany), showing his skills to capture the essence of these countries. Koudelka also captured the Soviet invasion of Prague in 1968, an example of photojournalism with historical vocation. Entry is free until November 29^th.

Categories: Arte y cultura