The Mapfre Foundation Bárbara de Braganza showroom opens on Thursday, May 31st, an exhibition dedicated to Brassaï, a Hungarian photographer who began his career in the interwar period and achieved wide recognition with his personal work.

This is the second retrospective dedicated to the artist in our country since that exhibition organised in the Antoni Tàpies Foundation in 1993. 25 years later, the Mapfre Foundation approaches the work of Brassaï thanks to the collaboration of numerous institutions that have made possible the montage.

He was born in Brasov (in 1899, when it still belonged to Hungary). The European journey of this artist was diverse, and he lived in several cities before moving to France. Also, his education began at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Budapest, but then he quitted his studies to fight in the First World War. At the end of the conflict, he began working as a journalist in Berlin and later in Paris, at which point he turned his career around. In the French capital, he experienced an immediate connection with the surrealist language, and this interest led him to collaborate with Dalí, Picasso, Giacometti and Matisse, among others. The result of the creative alliance with Dalí is the collection of images "Involuntary sculptures", with which he began his personal path within photography.

Brassaï collected many elements of his day-to-day life and that he integrated into his compositions, often as mosaics or as story-boards with which to deconstruct, reform and interpret reality, something very typical of the artistic current he belonged to. However, his work is difficult to classify. We find the images of the urban graffiti of the Paris of the slums, the exploration of the nightlife, with "unfiltered" portraits of the brothels and the district police stations...

"Whether they like it or not, the painters of modern life are the photographers," said Brassaï in 1949. His fascination with the French capital led him to explore all its corners, to go beyond the magnificent and monumental beauty of the city, to look for the pulse of its busy and vertiginous life at the peak of the artistic movements of the first third of the century. This exhibition covers the broad career of this artist and his versatility in its purest form.

Relive the Art Madrid’25 experience from anywhere, anytime, with our 360º Virtual Tour. Explore the fair as if you were there, navigating each space and discovering every artwork in detail.

Aerial View of Art Madrid'25. Photo by Lucas Amillano.

This year, we’ve taken the experience of Art Madrid’25 to the next level, allowing you to explore the fair from anywhere in the world. Walk through the exhibition spaces, get closer to the most fascinating pieces, and admire the impressive glass dome that bathes the entire venue in natural light. If there was any artwork you couldn’t fully appreciate or if you simply want to relive the fair’s atmosphere, now’s your chance.

Thanks to our collaboration with Coke Riera Studio and Panotour technology, we’ve captured the essence of Art Madrid’25 in an immersive tour with the highest quality and detail. Over 4,000 photographs taken from strategic points make up this interactive experience, bringing you closer to the art in an unparalleled way.

We’re thrilled to share this unique way of enjoying and revisiting contemporary art. The best part is that you can TRY IT and SHARE IT with anyone you wish! Don’t miss the chance to explore Art Madrid’25 in its full expression, whenever and wherever you choose.