Why is Spain the best place for your Art Holidays?

Art holidays in Spain

Spain is a touristic country with a developed infrastructure to receive tourism, being among the three most visited countries in the world. Millions of travellers come to Spain every year, attracted by its beaches and pleasant climate, the abundant artistic heritage of the country and the gastronomic richness, make Spain one of the best countries for an art holiday.

According to the 2017 report of the World Tourism Organization (WTO), Spain is the third country in the world in terms of the number of foreign tourists, with 75.6 million tourists per year in 2016, only surpassed by France and the United States.6

Foreign tourism in Spain

Spain is the fourth country in the world in terms of the number of foreign tourists with 52.7 million tourists per year, only surpassed by France, the United States of America and China.6

84.3% travel to Spain for leisure or holidays, and only 7.2% for work or business, 4.8% for personal reasons, and the rest for other unspecified reasons.

In 2016, 48.7% of foreign tourism in Spain came from only three countries: Germany, France and the United Kingdom, with 17,840,292 tourists.

Other countries or areas with a significant number of tourists are Italy, the Nordic countries, Benelux, Portugal, Ireland and Switzerland. By continent, 86.1% of tourists came from Europe, 7.1% from America and the remaining 6.8% from the rest of the world.

Barcelona and Madrid are the main tourist cities in Spain. They have a wide range of tourist attractions and art schools for your art holiday.

Because in Spain you can visit top art museums while doing your Art Holidays.

Spain has in its main cities large collections of art from different periods and styles. Here we will list what we consider can be 10 good inspirations for your art holiday travel.

Prado Museum, Madrid - Spain

The museum of all museums. The most valued Spanish art centre. It is an international reference and of course it is one of the most visited places by tourists. Art lovers from all over the world will not lose the opportunity to spend a couple of hours in the Prado Museum.

The Prado Museum has the most complete collection of Spanish paintings, so it takes at least an hour to go through all the galleries and see the works in detail. The collection covers the period from the 11th to the 18th century and includes some of the most important works in the history of art, such as "Las Meninas", a masterpiece by Velázquez, and Goya's "The Firing Squad of May 2", among other works by great geniuses of universal painting such as El Greco, Rubens and Rembrandt.

CaixaForum Madrid and Barcelona, Spain

- CaixaForum Madrid: Cultural centre dedicated to temporary art exhibitions, was open in 2008. It has had very important exhibitions, it is also part of the well-known Art Triangle, on Paseo del Prado in Madrid.

- CaixaForum Barcelona: Conferences, workshops, projections... CaixaForum Barcelona is a meeting point for artists and art lovers, where you can enjoy different exhibitions and very interesting conferences.

Its attraction is not only in the program, its building itself is a work of art. It has a modernist style, full of shapes, designed by the famous Catalan architect Josep Puig i Cadafalch.

Reina Sofia Museum, Madrid - Spain

The Reina Sofia Museum is one of the great museums of the capital od Spain. Its walls breathe art and its galleries are full of modern art. Contemporary and avant-garde works fill the building with light and colour.

In addition, its interior houses one of the most famous Spanish works "El Guernica" by Picasso.

Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao - Spain

Museum of avant-garde architecture, designed by Frank O. Gehry, which has managed to captivate millions of people, thanks to its sinuosities and variety of forms, and an extraordinary set of titanium volumes. Bilbao has become one of the great tourist destinations in Spain thanks to this great museum.

Dalí Museum, Figueres - Spain

The museum was built on the site of the former municipal theatre of Figueres and in it we see a reflection of the essence of Dalí and all his work. The painter himself supervised the works of art housed in the building.

The architecture of the museum is very particular, as it could not be otherwise. It is painted in red and gold colours and the most unique thing is that on the ceiling we can see concave figures in stone that imitate large white eggs. The museum is located about 140 km from the city of Barcelona.

Thyssen Bornemisza Museum, Madrid - Spain

If you want to enjoy a complete collection of art you can't miss the Thyssen Museum. Located on Paseo del Prado, in the palace of the Duke of Villa Hermosa, it is also part of the Art Triangle of Madrid.

The galleries house one of the most complete private art collections in the world. His paintings range from the 13th to the 20th century.

IVAM, Valencia - Spain

It is a gallery dedicated to modern art. IVAM ́s programme is very broad.
It is a Valencian art centre that you must visit, after a tour of the Museum of Arts and Sciences.

Picasso Museum, Barcelona - Spain

If you are a Picasso lover and admirer of his work... You can't miss this wonderful museum!

Located in Malaga, in the Buenavista Palace, it exhibits 155 unique works, where Picasso shows us his great mastery and talent. In his works we can see his incredible evolution, from classicism to the most perfect cubism.

Museum of Contemporary Art of Barcelona

It is one of the best known museums in Spain, and an obligated stop if you travel to Barcelona. It is dedicated to the exhibition of works belonging to the second half of the 20th century.Located in the neighborhood of El Raval in Barcelona, near the Center for Contemporary Culture of Barcelona.

You can be inspired in your painting holidays by the masters of Art in Spain

Spain has an extremely rich art tradition and the country has played an important role in the history of Western painting.

The Spanish Golden Age was a period between the early 16th century and the late 17th century becoming a major contributor in art and literature to the European art world. The best known Spanish artists of this period are Diego Velázquez, El Greco and Murillo. Francisco de Goya, the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th century, is considered the last of the old masters and the first of the modern ones.

Spanish artists had a great impact with some of the most influential artists of the modern era, such as Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí and Joan Miró, all of whom came from Spain. Below you will find 6 of the most famous and influential Spanish artists...

1. El Greco (1541-1614)

El Greco got his popular name from his Greek origin. After starting his career in Italy, he emigrated to Spain in 1577, where he produced his mature and best works. El Greco excelled as a painter of religious themes, but is also well known for his landscapes and portraits. His art is considered a forerunner of both expressionism and cubism.

Masterpiece: The Burial of the Count of Orgaz (1588)

2. Joan Miró (1893-1983)

Surrealism was an influential art movement in the 20th century. This movement rejected rationalism and literary realism, and instead focused on channeling the unconscious mind to reveal the power of imagination. Miró was one of the first artists to develop automatic drawing to undo the traditional techniques of painting and therefore, along with André Masson, they represented the beginning of surrealism.

3. Diego Velázquez (1599-1660)

Diego Velázquez was the principal artist at the court of King Philip IV of Spain. However, he only became popular outside of Spain in the early 19th century when his work of art became a model for both realist and impressionist painters. Since then, he has been considered one of the most influential painters in European history. Famous modern artists such as Picasso, Dalí and Bacon have paid tribute to him by reproducing several of his famous works.

4. Francisco de Goya (1746-1828)

Goya rose to prominence on the art scene with his tapestry cartoons. He later developed a taste for depictions of an obscure nature for which he is best known today. His black paintings portray intense themes, reflecting both his fear of madness and his sad look at humanity.

His style was an inspiration to the later generation of artists, and he is considered the most important Spanish artists of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and one of the greatest portraitists of modern times.

5. Salvador Dalí (1904-1989)

Dali was a preeminent artist of the Surrealist movement and created the most famous masterpiece of this movement.

His contribution to surrealism includes the paranoid critical method; in which the artist attempts to tap into his subconscious through systematic irrational thinking and a self-induced paranoid state. Recurring images in his works include elephants with brittle legs that evoke weightlessness, ants, which symbolizes death and decay, and fusion clocks, which are symbolic of non-linear human perception of time.

Dalí was one of the most influential painters in modern art and perhaps the most renowned artists of the 20th century after Picasso.

Masterpiece: The Persistence of Memory (1931)

6. Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)

Picasso was the most influential artist of the 20th century. He moved away from the practices of the past and pioneered the Cubism art movement which revolutionized European painting and sculpture.

His styles changed throughout his career as he decided to experiment with different techniques, theories and ideas. During his lifetime, he created about 1900 paintings. Some of these paintings are the most expensive ever sold, but his most famous works are usually found in museums.

Picasso is undoubtedly the most famous Spanish artist and many consider him to be the best artist of all time.

Because Spain has one of the best climate and light for your art holidays.

Spain is one of the warmest countries in Europe, so you probably won't have to use your umbrella much, although it depends on the time of year and the area you visit.

If you come to Spain in summer you will find temperatures in a range from 25 to 35 ºC approximately. We recommend that you bring light clothing to wear during your art holidays.

If you come in autumn the weather is more unstable and the temperatures oscillate between 15 and 20 ºC approximately, idea to make long walks in your free day around the art holidays cities.

If you come in winter, beware of inland and mountain areas. Temperatures drop and it usually snows, ranging between 2 and 15 ºC approximately.

If you come in spring the temperatures are pleasant (between 10 and 22 ºC approximately).

There is a special case, that of the Canary Islands, with 22 ºC of annual average.

Because Spain has a large network of Art Schools for your Art Holiday.

Spain has a large network of art schools of all kinds.

You can attend a classical school in Barcelona where the specialized techniques are extreme figuratism and sculpture to improve your technique with a small group of people.

A modern school in Madrid where you will find a young atmosphere for painting if you are a solo traveler.

And our polivalente school with experienced artists in Valencia where you can choose from all the painting courses they offer such as: watercolour paints, painting and sketching.

All necessary equipment as painting brushes is always included to enjoy learning with your painting partners.