Bilbao

As everyone says, the Guggenheim is a wonderful building which, along with the outside sculpture lends itself to much photo-taking!

Louise Bourgeois’ enormous spider, “Maman”.

My reflection in one of the silver bubbles in Anish Kapoor’s sculpture “Tall Tree and the Eye” (very small person in yellow t-shirt).

I also enjoyed some of the exhibitions, notably the whole floor of Jenny Holzer and the Richard Serra “The Matter of Time” sculpture https://www.guggenheim-bilbao.eus/en.

The Bilbao fine art museum https://www.museobilbao.com/in/ is excellent too. I particularly enjoyed the device used to present a selection of their permanent collection. There are themed rooms for each letter of the (Spanish) alphabet (B for Bilbao etc). In curating this exhibition, they gave themselves some flexibility by making use of words from any of 4 languages (Basque, Castilian Spanish, French, English) so for example “sport” was the theme for room K (Kirol being the word for sport in Basque) and room O had the theme “otherness”. Sounds complicated but it is well-done (and explained in English) and I found it a stimulating alternative to chronological or by-artist organisation. Recommended.

Altogether the range and quantity of art that I have been able to see on this trip is something I didn’t think to anticipate.

Aside from its formal art and architecture, Bilbao offers many photo opportunities.

Under the Puente la Salve.

Daytime view of a neon sign celebrating the Basque national game of pelota.