Museu Frederic Marès
The particularly Spanish art form of polychrome sculpture—the tradition of painting wooden carvings of religious figures in lifelike colors—has enjoyed a renaissance of late after a long period in the artistic doldrums. That would delight the sculptor and collector Frederic Marès (1893–1991), who spent his long life assembling one of Spain’s great collections of religious sculpture. This extraordinary museum in the shadow of the cathedral contains hundreds of polychrome figures, from their medieval and Baroque heyday through the 19th century. But that is just the start. Room after room on the upper floors is devoted to his Collector’s Cabinet, an astonishing—you could say obsessive—collection of everyday objects: Keys, clocks, bicycles, ladies’ fans and hatpins, smoothing irons, pharmacy bottles, dolls, photographs, pipes, even cigarette papers. Finally, in his library, is a collection of some of Marès’ own, rather restrained, sculpture.
The museum, acknowledging the vastness of its collections, allows you to use your admission ticket for a return visit.
The particularly Spanish art form of polychrome sculpture—the tradition of painting wooden carvings of religious figures in lifelike colors—has enjoyed a renaissance of late after a long period in the artistic doldrums. That would delight the sculptor and collector Frederic Marès (1893–1991), who spent his long life assembling one of Spain’s great collections of religious sculpture. This extraordinary museum in the shadow of the cathedral contains hundreds of polychrome figures, from their medieval and Baroque heyday through the 19th century. But that is just the start. Room after room on the upper floors is devoted to his Collector’s Cabinet, an astonishing—you could say obsessive—collection of everyday objects: Keys, clocks, bicycles, ladies’ fans and hatpins, smoothing irons, pharmacy bottles, dolls, photographs, pipes, even cigarette papers. Finally, in his library, is a collection of some of Marès’ own, rather restrained, sculpture.
The museum, acknowledging the vastness of its collections, allows you to use your admission ticket for a return visit.
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