Art world masters across five centuries

The Banco de Santander Art Collection opens its doors with the aim of sharing its artistic treasures with whoever wishes to visit. It offers the public a unique journey through the history of art from the 16th century to the present day.

Landmark figures

Alberto Sánchez, Bird driking water, 1956-1958
Joán Miró, *Sobreteixim*,1972

The exhibition brings together over 160 works by art world masters including El Greco, Francisco de Goya, Joaquín Sorolla, Pablo Picasso and Joan Miró. The Banco de Santander Art Collection also holds 32 pieces by the Spanish painter José Gutiérrez Solana, an artist with links to Cantabria.

While the core collection is made up of paintings, there are also interesting examples of sculpture by contemporary figures such as Eduardo Chillida, Richard Serra, Cristina Iglesias and Anish Kapoor.

A significant selection of tapestries, created by Europe’s leading manufacturers from the 16th to the 18th century, completes the collection, along with a wide range of coins and notes which trace the history of the Iberian Peninsula from the 3rd century BC through to the present day.

A collection of collections

Martin Chirino, Root, 1967

The Banco Santander Collection has grown over time with the incorporation of holdings from other banks now part of the same group. The result is one of the most relevant private collections in Spain. Since 2006, this collection has its own home: the 3,000 metre-squared exhibition halls at Ciudad Grupo Santander in Boadilla del Monte (Madrid), where part of the permanent holdings are on display from 15 July until late December 2019. For me, a genuine surprise and a place that’s well worth a visit.