Page 50 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL SUMMER 2022 DISCOVERING MADRID

Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía

Also in central Madrid, near Atocha Station, is Sofia since 1992.
the third leg of of the city’s “Golden Triangle of Powerful, especially given recent headlines
Art,” the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina from the war raging in Ukraine, “Guernica”
Sofía, famous for its displays of 20th century didn’t disappoint as a moving indictment of war.
most Spanish artworks. It was a very warm day But the museum had much more to offer. We
as we walked to the museum, exploring fasci- were surprised by the expansive collection of
nating streets and neighborhoods along the other international masters, including Matisse
way. The museum building was originally a hos- and Salvador Dali. And we especially enjoyed
pital until 1968 and was transformed into a mu- walking through the large landscaped courtyard
seum in the early 1990s. gardens, with its artful presentation of sculp-
Pablo Picasso’s masterpiece, “Guernica,” a tures by Alexander Calder, Joan Miró and Ed-
powerful depiction of the brutal bombing of the uardo Chillida.
city of the same name during the Spanish Civil Originally established as a garden for Spanish
War. Painted in 1937, the work was displayed royalty, El Retiro Park sprawls above one of
and housed around the world at the request of Madrid’s busiest thoroughfares. Wandering its
the artist who didn’t want it returned to Spain many pathways transports locals and visitors
until the demise of the country’s brutal dictator, alike from urban bustle into a green oasis per-
Francisco Franco. It has been on display at Reina fect for picnics or just relaxing in nature. Among

50 WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2022