Madrid concentrates in the Paseo del Arte (that axis integrated by the Reina Sofia, the Prado and the Thyssen) some of the most relevant works of history, but it is in its art galleries where the present and the future of this manifestation is exhibited.
The capital brings together most of these spaces in very specific areas of the city. Sometimes they are chosen for their location close to the big museums, for the purchasing power of its passers-by or for the spirit of the streets that attracted artists, as in the case of Chueca. Certain dates are also repeated, such as the early 1990s, the 2000s, and once again we see major openings from 2021 onwards, especially by names already established in other cities.
Art galleries in the Salamanca neighborhood
Opera Gallery
Opera Gallery is a newcomer to the city. Its 1000 m² of exhibition space was inaugurated in May 2023 with Loving Picasso, one of the exhibitions that were part of the 50th anniversary of his death, with works by artists influenced by the painter from Malaga, such as Fernando Botero or Roy Lichtenstein.
It is a gallery with an international vocation: it opened for the first time in Paris and Singapore simultaneously, and has 6 locations, including the one in Madrid. Its new headquarters is a boost for Spanish art, as it starts with the international representation of the painter Juan Genovés.
Serrano Street, 56
Guillermo de Osma Gallery
The list of artists who have passed through the Guillermo de Osma Gallery could be that of a good book on contemporary art: Eduardo Chillida, Maruja Mayo, Sonia Delaunay, Dalí or Picasso, among other great references that have occupied its walls.
In addition to the exhibition of avant-garde works, with a special focus on Spain and Latin America, the research and recovery of artists such as José Alemany Bori or Francisco Sobrino is in the DNA of this gallery.
Location: Claudio Coello street, 4, 1 IZDA
Salesas, Chueca and Alonso Martínez Art Galleries
Casado Santapau
It is likely that when reading the captions of any decoration magazine you will find Casado Santapau mentioned on numerous occasions, because the paintings of this contemporary art gallery decorate more than a few walls of the most luxurious houses in Madrid. This gallery, founded in 2007 by Damián Casado and Concha Santapau, is currently located in one of the streets with the highest concentration of art in Madrid.
Aldo Chaparro, David Renggli, Matthias Dornfeld or Diango Hernández are some of the artists who have exhibited at the gallery.
Location:Calle de Piamonte, 10
Elba Benítez Gallery
Galería Elba Benítez seems like a secret gallery only for connoisseurs, because it is located in the courtyard of a Justice building, but the reality is that since 1990, contemporary art works in various media have been passing through its walls. One of the things that identifies this gallery is its efforts to broaden the spectrum of formats, which include video art, performance or sculpture (to name a few) as well as the interaction between different disciplines such as architecture or film.
Location:San Lorenzo Street, 11 (patio)
Estampa Gallery
Estampa Gallery opened in 1978 by the hand of Manuel Cuevas and now his daughter Lucia Cuevas continues with the trade. Work that in this case involves more than being at the head of this exhibition space of Spanish contemporary art, here are also edited art books with manual printing. Worthy jewels to collect if you are interested in any of the artists they have published.
Location:Calle de Justiniano, 6
Alzueta Gallery
Alzueta Gallery was one of those galleries that is always on the list of things to do in Barcelona, but its new location in Salesas saves aesthetes an AVE.
Miquel Alzueta is often defined as an outsider who went from editing books to curating emerging artworks. Now, with the opening of Madrid and the intention to continue expanding, he is passing the baton to his daughter Júlia Alzueta.
Location: Marqués de Monasterio street, 1
Albarrán-Bourdais
Eva Albarrán and Christian Bourdais’s gallery is quite large, with two floors, and it is also suitable for interventions closer to architecture and performance. Both have been running their own contemporary art production company since 2004, one of the most important in France, with a special focus on public art, urbanism and large-scale art.
Location: Calle del Barquillo (Chueca)
Art galleries in the neighborhood of Las Letras
Helga de Alvear
The streets surrounding the Reina Sofia Museum concentrate galleries and art connoisseurs, especially Doctor Fourquet, where the collector Helga de Alvear set up her space in 1995. She was also the driving force behind the contemporary art museum that bears her name in Cuenca -another great venue for contemporary art at the national level.
Location: 12 Doctor Fourquet St.
MXM
MXM is the new name of La Causa Galería. It began its journey in Malasaña combining store and gallery with a focus on urban art, bringing fresh air to the artistic offer, where they still remain as La Causa Art Shop.
The good eye of Manuela Medina -art historian and cultural manager- and Pablo Méndez -architect- has allowed them to multiply the project, opening a space dedicated exclusively to the exhibition of young contemporary painting in Las Letras, while maintaining the original store.
Location:Calle San Pedro 6,
Espacio Mínimo
Espacio Mínimo Gallery is also part of the boom of contemporary art galleries that took place in the 90s in Spain, although its first opening was not in Madrid, but in Murcia. Already in the 2000s they brought their vision of the latest international plastic proposals to the capital, and rightly chose this neighborhood.
Location:Doctor Fourquet Street, 17