City of Museums

February 4, 2020…

Recently, Malaga has begun to refer to itself as the City of Museums. This is the kind of boosterism most cities indulge in  (San Diego: America’s Finest City, Santa Fe: The City Different)  but in Malaga it is true enough. I don’t know the number of museums a city of 600,000 is supposed to have but Malaga currently claims to have 37. Some are better than others, naturally, but almost all are very viewer friendly. Not just in scale; they are usually well-located, affordable, and interesting, if not downright eccentric. Aside from the Picasso Museum, which often has a line out the door, or the Centre Pompidou Malaga which has big name appeal and a great location, they are, in the words of Little Red Riding Hood, just right.

Museum of Malaga at Palacio de la Aduana

Don’t get me wrong, I love the grand scale of the Metropolitan Museum in NYC or the Prado in Madrid, but what a luxury to wander into a museum because you happen to be passing by, or revisit your favorite rooms and leave without feeling you’ve not had your money’s worth.

If you would like to read about some of our favorites…

Centre Pompidou Malaga yes this is the little sister of the original in Paris and it houses about 70 pieces from the contemporary collection of the Paris Center, with 3 or 4 traveling exhibitions per year. Exhibitions are often playful, without any sense of taking itself too seriously.  It was opened in Malaga in 2015 at Muelle Uno (Pier One), the redeveloped port area. With its modern colored cube as dome, it has become a Malaga icon. €9 for the entire collection with reduced rates for seniors, students and unemployed. Closed Tuesdays.

Centre Pompidou Malaga

Museum of Malaga this beautiful building was born as the Port Customs House in 1791 and served all kinds of functions over the years, including as a one time factory. In 2007, the Archeological Museum and the Fine Arts Museum were combined here as an official Provincial Museum. The Fine Arts section contains works by Picasso, Sorolla, de Goya, Velasquez, all the Spanish daddies, but for me the real gem is the archeological section, which came from the private collection of local robber barons the Casa-Lorings. Phoenician, Roman, and prehistoric relics that were either found locally or purchased/ stolen in the good old colonial days.

It is worth the price of admission just to wander the building, and have a coffee at the top floor terrace, with a spectacular view of the Alcazaba.

€1.50 ! Free for EU citizens. Closed Mondays.

View from the Terrace of the Museum of Malaga

Auto Museum (Museo Automovilistíco) I ho-hummed over this museum for quite a long time because it’s:

1. a car museum

2. quite removed from the historic district

but I was flabbergasted when I finally made it over there last year. Not only is it a PRIVATE collection of 90 immaculate period autos from the past century, it is also a fashion museum of corresponding periods, all in a space of 65,000 square feet that was once a thriving tobacco factory.

It’s hard to imagine the passion, the money, the sheer eccentricity that produced this museum.

Located at La Tabacalera. €9.50 general €7 seniors- open every day

Glass Museum (Museo de Vidrio y Cristal) This museum is another private collection with enough money behind it that the owner (speaking of eccentrics) decided to just, what the hell, open a museum. The collection is, naturally, an amazing display of period glassware from all over the world, housed in a beautiful old home, along with an impressive collection of antique furniture and paintings, as well. The owner and volunteer guides can be a little fussy: “Don’t touch that. You can’t stand there.”  but really who wouldn’t be?

Plazuela Santísimo Cristo de la Sangre, 2 (Next door to us, as it happens)

€7 general, €5 seniors and students. Closed Mondays and all of August.

The Alcazaba (The Citadel) Every major city in Southern Spain has the remains of a Moorish fortress and most have been lovingly restored as very popular tourist attractions. Ours is no exception. First built in 1060, this fortress was one of the most important because of its prime location, with its strategic views of the Mediterranean.

Alcazaba overlooking the Mediterranean Sea

It sweeps up a hill overlooking the sea, and although was only briefly an actual palace, a thriving Moorish neighborhood once existed at its feet, along with the ruins of a Roman Amphitheater and Phoenician fish factory. The climb to the top passes gardens and fountains, restored and redesigned many times over the centuries, as it winds through its complex series of arches and turnarounds designed to honor traditional Moorish architectural styles.

Moorish Archway

Calle Alcazabilla, 2  €3.50 Closed Mondays and major holidays

Picasso Museum Malaga is rightfully very proud of this museum, and of being the birthplace of Pablo Picasso. Although it doesn’t contain all the most well known of Picasso’s works (They are scattered all over the world, and Barcelona also has its own Picasso Museum; he lived there aged 14-24), it is housed in a gorgeous 16th century Andalusian home that feels both intimate and affectionate toward its subject, as well as the work of many of Picassos contemporaries.

Interior courtyard of the Picasso Museum

Also interesting, during the home’s restoration as a museum in the early 2000’s, Phoenician and Roman ruins were discovered in the cellar and now provide an interesting display of ordinary life during Malaga’s past. [Note: in Malaga it is impossible to bury a cat without hitting ancient ruins; there is a Phoenician wall in our parking garage, now properly displayed and catalogued.]

Calle de San Agustín, 8  €9 adult €7 senior. open daily. GO EARLY! opens at 10am

Carmen Thyssen Museum This lovely museum focuses on 19th and early 20th century Andalusian and Spanish Painting. Housed in the refurbished 16th century Palacio de Villalón, it has a permanent collection of 230 paintings, with traveling exhibitions that are varied and intimate.

Carmen Thyssen Museum

It is located right off the Plaza Constitución, in the heart of the city, with lots of small shady plazas and cafes nearby.

Calle Campañia, 10  €10 general €6 seniors. Closed Mondays.

CAC Malaga (Centro de Arte Contemporáneo), locally referred to with a snicker as COCK, the Spanish pronunciation, Malaga’s Modern Art Museum was opened in 2003 in the previous home of the Wholesaler’s Market, right on the River Guadalmedina. It focuses on local and international contemporary art, video, and multimedia. It is an impressive 25,000 sf, with plans to add more space, although it can feel a bit sparse at its current size. It is a city-owned museum and sometimes seems inconsistently curated. But since it’s free, it is worth checking out exhibits, as I recently discovered an exhibit I loved, called Dracula x Dracula by Spanish collective Laboratorio de las Artes, which plays on the character Dracula as well as a 1970’s Spanish popsicle by the same name. How could that be bad?

Dracula X Dracula

As a plus, there is a fantastic restaurant located inside the museum, Oléo, which serves the best sushi in town (I am told) as well as traditional Spanish dishes (meat). I recently met friends for lunch there. The Cochinillo Confitado y Dorado (suckling pig) melted in my mouth.

Calle Alemania, Free, Closed Mondays