Since the end of November the Christmas spirit has spread through the streets of Madrid to give it a unique and special charm. In any corner of the city you can find a multitude of activities related to these endearing parties but during this period we can also make an impasse to enjoy other types of activities in our free time that are not related to Christmas.
Whether you are from Madrid, or if you intend to spend a few days in the city these parties, we recommend you not to miss these exhibitions with a lot of art that we propose to you next.
Cleopatra at the Arte Canal Exhibition Center
The Arte Canal Exhibition Center presents a large exhibition dedicated to Cleopatra, the last queen of Egypt. About 2000 square meters will house various objects that will bring the life of one of the most fascinating female characters in history closer to the public.
In this sample Visitors will be able to see more than 400 pieces from 80 Spanish and international museums and collections, some from archaeological sites in Egypt, Pompeii, Rome and Hispania. These include a bust of the queen carved in alabaster or a glass ring in the shape of a scarab from the 1963nd and XNUMXst centuries BC, as well as the costumes worn by Elizabeth Taylor in the movie Cleopatra shot in XNUMX.
This exhibition presents Cleopatra from various points of view: as Queen of Egypt, as the lover of Mark Antony, or as an enemy of the future Emperor Caesar Augustus. It will also cover historical periods of great interest such as ancient Egypt from the Ptolemaic period and as a Roman province, the passage from republican to imperial Rome and the Egyptian influence in the Iberian peninsula through the Phoenicians and Romans.
In "Cleopatra and the fascination of Egypt" there will be an analysis of the representations of the Egyptian queen in the plastic arts and in the cinema along the history. Until May 8, 2016. Entry 7 euros.
Edvard Munch at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum
Throughout his 50-year career, Edvard Munch produced 28.000 works. The most famous of them is El Grito, to the point of becoming one of the most recognized icons in the history of Art, but Munch's fame came not long ago.
The Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum wants to bring us his life and work and therefore will host the first Edvard Munch exhibition in Madrid since 1984. The exhibition makes a retrospective of the work of the Norwegian author with eighty artistic pieces. This exhibition is called "Archetypes" because the exhibition presents a wide catalog of emotional prototypes that reflect the obsessions of the author during his life: love, desire, jealousy, anxiety or death.
The entrance to the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum to see this exhibition has a price of 11 euros. Until January 17, 2016.
Women at the forefront
The exhibition «Women in the vanguard. The Residencia de Señoritas on its centenary (1915-1936) » brings to the public the role of the female group of the Residencia de Estudiantes in the incorporation of women into the university and the passage through this institution of figures such as MarÃa de Maeztu or Victoria Kent.
Therefore, The Student Residence wants to pay tribute to what was the first official center in Spain to promote higher education for women. Through a selection of books, documents, photographs and works of art provided by the Sorolla Museum, the Reina SofÃa Museum or the José Ortega y Gasset-Gregorio Marañón Foundation, the experiences and works of these women in the Residence are reconstructed.
The exhibition can be visited until March 27, 2016. Entry 25 euros.
Women in Rome at Caixaforum
While it is true that in public life Roman women had a limited role, in private life they occupied a very prominent place unlike other ancient societies. Over time, his condition evolved to leave behind a traditional image and fulfill different roles as a main figure in mythology, religion, and as an allegory of excess and seduction.
This is the main theme of the exhibition «Women in Rome: seductive, maternal and excessive», organized by CaixaForum next to the Louvre Museum in Paris. Through 200 pieces from domestic environments (many of them restored for the occasion) the exhibition will reveal the role that women had in society according to their representation in the decoration of Roman villas.
Until February 14, 2016. Entry 4 euros.
Pierre Bonnard at the Mapfre Foundation
The retrospective dedicated to the work of Pierre Bonnard at the Mapfre Foundation is the first held in Spain in more than thirty years despite the influence it exerted among the painters of the eighties. In this exhibition some 80 paintings, a dozen drawings and fifty photographs are exhibited, some never seen before in our country.
Bonnard's work is essential to understand the transition between post-impressionism and symbolism. The exhibition, organized by themes, begins with its nabi stage. Then come his series dedicated to interior scenes (in general everyday scenes) and then the paintings dedicated to the nude, always in the domestic sphere.
The exhibition has been organized by the Musée d'Orsay in Paris in collaboration with the Fine Art Museums of San Francisco and can be seen at the Mapfre Foundation until January 10, 2016.