National Museum Of Catalonia Art - MNAC

The Catalonian National Art Museum is housed in the former "Palau Nacional" at the foot of Montjuïc and is regarded as the best Art Museum in Barcelona. It houses an enormous collection of Medieval Art stemming from the Romanesque and Gothic periods. Many of the frescos were collected from the Roman churches of the surrounding villages. Fortunately, this was before the churches came under large scale attack by a population incensed by the church’s political alignment with Madrid. Frescos and paintings are complemented with sculptures, wood carvings and other pieces collected from the churches at the time.

The museum also recently added a section dedicated to Picasso and is constantly expanding its permanent collection. In addition, it shows several temporary exhibitions every year, ranging from classic topics like still lifes to more modern painters such as Gauguin or Van Gogh. A visit to the building is worth it alone, given its impressive architecture and spectacular location overlooking the city. During the summer, the museum hosts classical music concerts, accompanied by the famous water and lights show at the Magic Fountains below.


From May to September, the museum extends its opening hours and adds several interesting cultural activities to its programme, inviting visitors to discover its collections and temporary shows in an entertaining manner, taking advantage of long summer nights and featuring an irrisitible combination of art and music.