The main entrance

The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía (MNCARS) is the official name Spain's national museum of 20th century art (informally shortened to the Museo Reina Sofía or Queen Sofia Museum). The museum was officially inaugurated on September 10, 1992 and is named for Queen Sofia of Spain. It is located in Madrid, near the Atocha train and metro stations, at the southern end of the so-called Golden Triangle of Art (located along the Paseo del Prado and also comprising the Museo del Prado and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza). A museum is a non-profit making, permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits, for purposes of study, education and enjoyment, the tangible and intangible evidence of people and their environment. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... Although today the word art usually refers to the visual arts, the concept of what art is has continuously changed over centuries. ... September 10 is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years). ... Queen Sofía Her Majesty Queen Sofía (Sofía de Grecia y Hannover), styled HM The Queen, is the queen of Spain, wife of King Juan Carlos of Spain. ... Coat of arms The Plaza de España square Madrid, the capital of Spain, is located in the center of the country at 40°25′ N 3°45′ W. Population of the city of Madrid proper was 3,093,000 (Madrilenes, madrileños) as of 2003 estimates. ... For other uses, see Atocha (disambiguation). ... The Madrid Metro is the large metro system serving Madrid, the capital of Spain. ... The Museo del Prado is a world class museum and art gallery located in Madrid, Spain. ...

Highlights of the museum include excellent collections of Spain's two greatest 20th century masters, Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dalí. Certainly the most famous masterpiece in the museum is Picasso's great painting Guernica. The Reina Sofía also has fine collections of the works of Juan Gris, Joan Miró, Julio González, Eduardo Chillida, Pablo Palazuelo, Antoni Tàpies, Pablo Gargallo, Lucio Muñoz, Luis Gordillo, Jorge Oteiza, José Luis Gutiérrez Solana and many other significant artists. It also hosts a free-access library specializing in art, with a collection of over 100,000 books, over 3,500 sound recordings and almost 1,000 videos. A young Pablo Picasso Pablo Picasso, formally Pablo Ruiz Picasso, (October 25, 1881 - April 8, 1973) was one of the recognized masters of 20th century art. ... Salvador Dalí as photographed in 1934 by Carl Van Vechten Salvador Domenec Felip Jacint Dalí Domenech ( May 11, 1904 – January 23, 1989) was an important Catalan- Spanish painter, best known for his surrealist works. ... Guernica is one of the most famous paintings by Pablo Picasso, depicting the consequences of the bombing of Guernica. ... José Victoriano Carmelo Carlos González-Pérez (March 23, 1887 - May 11, 1927), better known as Juan Gris, was a Spanish painter who lived and worked in France almost all his life. ... Joan Miró ( April 20, 1893 - December 25, 1983) was a painter, sculptor and ceramist born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. ... Eduardo Chillida (Chee-YEE-dah) Juantegui (1924 - ­2002) was a Spanish Basque sculptor. ... Pablo Gargallo (1881-1934) was a Spanish sculptor and painter who was born in Maella, (Zaragoza) and who died in Reus, (Tarragona). ...

The central building of the museum was an 18th century hospital. Extensive modern renovations and additions to the old building were made starting in 1980. In 1988 portions of the new museum were opened to the public, mostly in temporary configurations; that same year it was decreed a national museum. A major expansion, designed by French architect Jean Nouvel, is currently under its final stage of construction. (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... A hospital today is an institution for professional health care provided by physicians and nurses. ... Jean Nouvel (born August 12, 1945) is a French architect. ...

External links

• MNCARS - Official Website (http://museoreinasofia.mcu.es/portada/portada_ING.php)