Spain: Guggenheim Bilbao Museum

Long on my list of things to see, but never thinking I might, was the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. To be honest, it’s the main reason I picked the city for a visit.

First reason was the architecture, a masterpiece of a building designed by the architect Frank Gehry. It’s beautiful, and my photo above doesn’t do it justice. For more, you can check out the museum’s website.

Inside, the fun began with a light display that entranced kids and adults alike. You can view it from both sides and run (or walk, if you’re not four years old like Emil) through it, and each one provides a different experience.

I spent the rest of my visit exploring the Richard Serra exhibit, The Matter of Time, 1994-2005. There was something mesmerizing about the long, sinuous curves and the unexpected shape-shifting light inside the physical shapes. I spent an hour or so in this one exhibit.

You can walk through the long walks, experience a kind of labyrinth in the circular ones, and see and feel the different colors and textures.

The exhibit is a permanent one, so it’s not crammed full of people and I could stop and get cool shots like this one, from one of the maze-like circles.

This one almost looks like an abstract painting, at least to me.

The one below was fun, because if you picked the right “aisle” to walk down, you entered an echo chamber that changed as you proceeded. Quite fun!

I probably could have spent more time here, but four year olds and families were waiting, so we checked out of the museum to continue our Bilbao adventures.

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Art is an evolutionary act. The shape of art and its role in society is constantly changing. At no point is art static. There are no rules.

Raymond Salvatore Harmo