Madrid’s Thyssen Plans a Second Venue for 365 Contemporary Works
Madrid’s Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza will turn the former Palacio del Hielo y del Automóvil into a second venue for 365 works from the TBA21 Collection, with opening targeted for around 2032. A September 22 interview clarifies that 186 works are a gift while 179 remain a free long-term loan. That distinction determines what becomes public property—and what does not—as Spain prepares a building project priced at about €90 million.
What the Thyssen Is Actually Getting
The plan announced on September 16 is not a 365-work donation. The collection owner’s announcement divides the group into 186 donated works and 179 works supplied on long-term loan. Together, they total 365.
| Part | Announced figures | Practical effect |
|---|---|---|
| Donation | 186 works; about €16 million | Full, permanent transfer into public art holdings |
| Long-term loan | 179 works; about €10 million | Long-term loan without financial consideration; no ownership transfer announced |
| Building project | About €90 million | Architecture and construction for the publicly owned site |
| Fit-out | No separate total published | Culture and the museum fund museography and equipment |
The figures also resolve imprecision in early coverage. An EFE headline said 350 works, although its own text listed 186 plus 179—the same 365 now stated by TBA21 and El País. EFE valued the donated group at €15 million, El País described it as nearly €16 million, and the Ministry of Finance and TBA21 use €16 million. About €16 million is the institutional valuation, not a purchase price, because no sale is taking place.
How 365 Works Change the Museum’s Range
The permanent transfer carries the larger institutional consequence. TBA21 says the full selection represents 169 individual artists and 19 collectives, including Ai Weiwei, Marina Abramović, John Akomfrah, Monica Bonvicini, Olafur Eliasson, Taloi Havini, Pierre Huyghe, Ernesto Neto and Bill Viola.
This is not merely a chronological extension of the Thyssen’s paintings. The works span sculpture, installation, performance, sound, film, photography and digital practice—media central to any useful account of what contemporary art encompasses. TBA21 identifies ecology, social justice, Indigenous knowledge, feminism and gender among the collection’s recurring concerns.
The museum and TBA21 have collaborated since 2018, placing contemporary projects in conversation with the historical holdings at Villahermosa Palace. The new center turns that programming relationship into a collection-level commitment and adds another substantial state platform for current practice to Spain’s art museum landscape.
Why the Loan Is Not the Same as the Gift
The donated works enter public ownership permanently. The 179 loaned works complement that gift, but the announcements do not say that their title transfers to the museum. They also do not publish the loan’s duration, renewal provisions or circumstances under which individual works could be withdrawn.
In her September 22 interview with El País, Francesca Thyssen-Bornemisza said the venue would carry neither her name nor TBA21’s and described herself as retired. Those statements clarify the intended branding and her personal role; they do not disclose the loan contract or the future center’s governance structure.
The former Palacio del Hielo y del Automóvil, planned as the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza’s second venue. Photograph: Luis García (Zaqarbal), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
What the €90 Million Public Project Covers
The former Palacio del Hielo remains publicly owned. Under the Ministry of Finance plan, the ministry will transfer its use to the museum and finance the comprehensive rehabilitation. The Ministry of Culture and the Thyssen will take responsibility for museography, equipment and fitting out the museum area. The Interior Ministry will equip a Madrid branch of the Victims of Terrorism Memorial Centre in the same building.
Several area figures describe different parts of the project. The renovated building is expected to contain roughly 19,500 square meters plus a 1,500-square-meter courtyard garden. The government says about 10,000 square meters will serve the museum extension, while El País reports more than 8,000 square meters for displaying art and related activities. The smaller numbers therefore describe uses within the larger structure, not competing measurements of the building.
The official schedule is:
- 2026: Define the building program and architectural competition.
- 2027–2028: Develop the winning architectural project.
- From 2029: Begin construction.
- Around 2032: Complete the building and bring it into use.
The Art Newspaper reported construction completion around 2031, while the ministry’s own timetable places a finished, operating building around 2032. Those dates may refer to successive milestones, but 2032 is the stronger benchmark for a public opening.
EFE identified roughly €70 million for restoration and adaptation, whereas the government’s €90 million figure covers the architectural project and construction together. The difference reflects scope rather than evidence of a cost increase.
What Has Not Yet Been Designed
No architect or final scheme has been selected. TBA21 says neighborhood consultation will help determine community uses, and the government identifies education, research, conservation and public participation as priorities, but neither has published a gallery-by-gallery plan.
The annual operating budget also remains undisclosed. So do the precise allocation of the 365 works at opening, the conservation demands of installation and digital works, and the legal term of the 179-work loan.
The north façade of the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza’s Villahermosa Palace. Photograph: Luis García (Zaqarbal), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
365 Works, With Two Different Legal Futures
- TBA21’s announcement establishes 186 permanently donated works and 179 long-term loans, totaling 365.
- The official valuation is about €16 million for the donation and €10 million for the loaned group.
- The Ministry of Finance establishes a roughly €90 million architecture-and-construction program with an operating target around 2032.
- EFE’s 350-work headline is inconsistent with both its own figures and TBA21’s exact total.
- The architect, final display plan, annual operating cost and loan terms remain unannounced.
Isabella studied at the University of Cape Town in South Africa and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts majoring in English Literature & Language and Psychology. Throughout her undergraduate years, she took Art History as an additional subject and absolutely loved it. Building on from her art history knowledge that began in high school, art has always been a particular area of fascination for her. From learning about artworks previously unknown to her, or sharpening her existing understanding of specific works, the ability to continue learning within this interesting sphere excites her greatly.
Her focal points of interest in art history encompass profiling specific artists and art movements, as it is these areas where she is able to really dig deep into the rich narrative of the art world. Additionally, she particularly enjoys exploring the different artistic styles of the 20th century, as well as the important impact that female artists have had on the development of art history.
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Cite this Article
Isabella, Meyer, “Madrid’s Thyssen Plans a Second Venue for 365 Contemporary Works.” Art in Context. September 22, 2026. URL: https://artincontext.org/thyssen-museum-second-venue-365-tba21-works/
Meyer, I. (2026, 22 September). Madrid’s Thyssen Plans a Second Venue for 365 Contemporary Works. Art in Context. https://artincontext.org/thyssen-museum-second-venue-365-tba21-works/
Meyer, Isabella. “Madrid’s Thyssen Plans a Second Venue for 365 Contemporary Works.” Art in Context, September 22, 2026. https://artincontext.org/thyssen-museum-second-venue-365-tba21-works/.
