When the Malaga Picasso Museum opened in 2003, it rained. However, that didn’t dampen the mood, and the city celebrated its official museum to display the Cubist artist’s works.

In the 1930s, the idea of a gallery to display and celebrate the work of Picasso was first suggested by Malaga intellectual, Juan Temboury.

“There are many museums fortunate enough to house his paintings, but here, the Picasso collection should have essentially taken shape, showcasing the evolutionary progression of his work and its significant shifts in direction,” explained Temboury in one of the many letters exchanged with Picasso, particularly in 1953.

In the 1960s, the Museum of Fine Arts of Malaga hosted the first solo exhibition of Picasso in the city. Decades later Christine Picasso, the artist’s daughter-in-law, was inspired by the immense reception of the classic Picasso exhibition held in the Episcopal Palace in the 1990s.

At the suggestion of the Andalucian Government, she visited the Palace of the Counts of Buenavista, which formerly housed the Museum of Fine Arts. The restoration of the space and a significant donation from Christine, along with the artist’s grandson, Bernard Ruiz-Picasso, preceded the inauguration of this now iconic museum on October 27, 2003.

The Hispanist Ian Gibson, at the Picasso Museum Malaga opening ceremony said the long-anticipated and grand opening of the museum essentially symbolised “reconciliation with Picasso after many years of Franco’s dictatorship.” He added with satisfaction, “Genius returns to its origins.”

The museum continues to draw thousands of visitors every year. In 2022, 641,216 visitors enjoyed the works at the Picasso Museum Malaga. That figure is just short of the record 700,000+ visitors the art gallery received in 2019.

Take in one of Toma & Coe’s art tours, which encapsulate the different art galleries and street are in this cultural city.