Lázaro Galdiano Museum – A Madrid’s little-known treasure
Among the capital’s fine art museums, foundations and prestigious private collections, there is one unfairly overlooked museum. The Lázaro Galdiano Museum is both a superb showcase and a rich, eclectic collection of art.
José Lázaro Galdiano, a passionate collector
Born in Beire, in Navarra, in 1862 in a wealthy family, José Lázaro Galdiano moved to Barcelona after his studies, where he alternated between University and jobs as secretary and art critic for the Spanish journal “La Vanguardia”.
It was in Madrid that he started the publishing project “La España Moderna” (Modern Spain), an artists’ magazine and publishing house that translated the great Western literary classics into Spanish. As a true bibliophile, Lázaro collected over 20,000 volumes, manuscripts and prints, as well as numerous art objects, making him an art expert and trader.
In 1903, he married Paula Florido y Toledo, a wealthy Argentine woman, and in 1904 he began building the Parque Florido, a large mansion in Madrid, which was to become the present museum. An avid traveler, he died in his residence in 1947, leaving all his possessions to the Spanish state. This led to the creation of the Lázaro Galdiano Foundation, which opened the museum to the public, as well as the collector’s library and archives.
Masterpieces of the museum
The quality of the Lázaro Galdiano Museum’s collections should ensure it a solid reputation in Spain, yet, perhaps because of the presence of huge museums such as the Prado, or its location, far from the heart of Madrid, this is not the case.
And yet, its collections contain some great masterpieces. Curious about primitive artists, before the Great Renaissance, Lázaro owned pictures from the late Gothic period, for example, with very rare altarpieces and paintings on wood from Spain and Flanders. But we also find the obsessions of Jerome Bosch, with his views of Hell, where the deadly sins lead us, or the elongated, fantastical bodies by El Greco, yet still little recognized in the art world in the 19th century.
And the Spanish royal family is also present, with portraits by José de Ribera, Francisco de Zurbarán or Rafael Mengs, but above all with illustrations by the Renaissance artist Sofonisba Anguissola, still too little exhibited in Europe.
A unique institution
Plus its masterpieces, the museum is a must-see for the rarity of its exhibits: beyond the paintings, there is precious furniture, jewelry from the 1st to the 18th century, and miniatures.
A strangeness for Madrid, since the great Spanish collections were built on the basis of its Empire, and therefore mainly feature Italian, Flemish or, with the arrival of the Bourbon dynasty, French pieces, the Lázaro Galdiano Museum is one of the few to exhibit the English school, with canvases by Joshua Reynolds or even John Constable.
And to spoil nothing, the building housing these works is itself sublime. The palace is surrounded by a garden with palm trees, and within it, we are introduced into art with the living quarters of the Lazaro family, with archive photos allowing us to project ourselves in these rooms without the actual showcase. The first-floor stained-glass windows, the wooden balconies, the parquet floors and murals have all been restored, giving an idea of the wealth of this family of collectors.
As you know now, this is a museum to visit without delay, and yet another opportunity to discover the jewels of Madrid’s capital, whose secrets you can learn alongside us thanks to our free tour Madrid . Do not miss it!
