This white elephant displaced several historic blocks of the Raval neighborhood when it was built in the 1990s, and it’s still trying to define its role in the art world. Conceived as a showcase for contemporary art from the mid-20th century on, MACBA tends to install exhibitions of the most esoteric—and incomprehensible—nature, scaring away potential visitors. (It doesn’t also help that the museum promotes its exhibitions in the square outside only in Catalan.) What it HAS done for the neighborhood is to bring youth and vibrancy to the formerly seedy district—in the form of hundreds of skateboarders, who are drawn to the ramps in front of the building. Save your money and, if you’re a Richard Meier fan, admire the building’s architecture from the outside. Two of MACBA’s most striking artworks can be viewed in the square near the entrance without paying admission: a forceful black-and-white ceramic mural by Basque sculptor Eduardo Chillida, and a reconstruction of Keith Haring’s cautionary 1986 AIDS mural that was originally painted in a nearby square. A gothic chapel near the museum, the Convent dels Angels, which is part of MACBA, frequently installs the work of individual artists, and the lovely 16th-century stone space can work well as a contemporary exhibition gallery.