Permanent collection

The Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection was established around the end of the 1920s with the aim of assembling the principal milestones in the history of Western art. Its founder, Baron Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza, acquired works dated between the 13^th century and the early 19^th century. From 1948, his son Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza continued his work, not only reinforcing the presence of Old Masters but also extending the chronological scope of the collection to include works from the 1980s. 

Initially housed in Lugano, Switzerland, at Villa Favorita, the collection soon lacked sufficient space to be properly displayed. Therefore, in the mid-1980s, Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza decided to seek a new location for it. Thanks in large part to his fifth wife, Carmen Cervera, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum was inaugurated in Madrid in October 1992. Just a few months later, the Spanish government reached an agreement with the baron to acquire the collection, which has since belonged to all Spaniards. 

Featuring around 700 works, mostly paintings, spanning seven centuries, the collection offers visitors the opportunity to enjoy a comprehensive overview of the main schools of Western art. The Renaissance in Italy, the Netherlands, and Germany, 17^th century Dutch painting, 18^th century Italian vedutism, French Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, and 20^th century German Expressionism are among the primary styles and movements represented. Among the most notable artists are Van Eyck, Ghirlandaio, Holbein, Carpaccio, Dürer, Titian, Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Hals, Canaletto, Courbet, Manet, Monet, Pissarro, Degas, Morisot, Gauguin, Van Gogh, Matisse, Picasso, Kirchner, Kandinsky, Mondrian, Miró, Dalí, Hopper, O’Keeffe, Pollock, Lichtenstein, and Bacon. 

Since its reinstallation in 2021 on the museum's two upper floors, the visit to the permanent collection has become more coherent. The tour begins on the second floor, dedicated exclusively to Old Masters, and continues on the first floor, with the modern masters, arranged in reverse order.