Argentina‘s dynamic capital will never fail to surprise you, thanks in no small part to an amazing cultural menu that’s helped make it South America‘s single most popular destination. And of course an important chunk of that culture resides in its dozens of museums showcasing a huge variety of art, history, the sciences, and much more. So here’s a look at just a handful of them you might want to make sure not to miss.
Hark, It’s Art!
The 129-year-old National Museum of Fine Arts of Buenos Aires (MNBA) in the Recoleta district is one of the most important in all of Latin America and is responsible for collecting the largest artistic heritage in Argentina. Inside there are hundreds of works such as engravings, sculptures or tapestries, among others, with around 700 works being exhibited in its rooms, with interntationally famous names including Goya, Monet, Picasso, Rubens, and Van Gogh, along of course with prominent Argentine artists – especially of the 20th century – including at Antonio Berni, Raquel Forner, Satah Grilo, Emilio Pettoruti, and Xul Solar.
As for more avant-garde art, the Museum of Modern Art of Buenos Aires (MAMBA) in the San Telmo neighbourhood, co-founded in 1956 by art critic Rafael Squirru and especially showcasing minimalism, figurative art, and conceptualism, by many of the above Argentine artists along with others such as Curatella Manes, Marta Minujin, and Guillermo Kuitca, and the international likes of Kandinsky and Mondrian. And just a few meters away, the Museum of Contemporary Art of Buenos Aires (MACBA) has since 2012 been an opportunity to delve into temporary exhibitions full of new visual languages and spaces for reflection on works – especially abstract – by various Latin American artists.
Over in the Retiro area, the Isaac Fernández Blanco Museum of Hispanic American Art, housed in the Palacio Noel, a classic colonial manse of stone and stucco, displays an extensive collection of Latin American art, especially from the colonial period. Meanwhile, the original Fernandez Blanco manse in the Congreso district displays a wealth of documents and items from the 19th and early 20th century such as silverware, religious icons, porcelain, furniture, hand fans, hair combs, and books.
And for an artistic look at the “mother country”, the Enrique Larreta Museum of Spanish Art, in a neo-colonial Belgrano manse, serves up its own collection of paintings and sculptures, from the medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque periods, as well as ceramics, furniture, tapestries, armour. Out back is an Andalusian-style garden with trees such as ombú (native to the Argentine pampas), Asian ginko biloba. cypress, palm, bitter orange, silk floss, and wisteria (including one that´s a century old).
Another Interesting Pair
B.A. is full of speciality museums, as well, and one of the most interesting ones is the Pablo Ducrós Hicken Cinema Museum in the La Boca neighbourhood, which of course exhaustively covers anything and everything related to Argentine cinema. In addition, it offers regular screenings, special events, and other activities including painting workshops.
And finally, for a taste of a particularly singular period in Argentine history, check out the Evita Museum (above), devoted to the revered Eva María Duarte de Perón, who was the first lady of Argentina from 1946 to 1852 during the first presidency of Juan Perón and also reflects the social transformation and the fight for equality carried out in Argentina after the fall of the infamous decade and the installation of Peronism . Visiting this museum will help you understand the reality of Argentine society.
Seven more cultural reasons to make your next trip be Buenos Aires with Iberia!