Not everyone knows that Pablo Ruiz Picasso, one of the greatest artists of the 20th century, spent a very important stage of his life in the Galician city of A Coruña. He lived in the city from the age of 9 to 13, and began to draw there.It is always a good time to visit this beautiful city in northern Spain. And, if you are interested in Picasso, you can discover the places most related to this stage in the artist's life, starting with his family home. Find out how the genius was shaped.
In 1891, aged 9, Picasso moved with his family to A Coruña, where his father was a professor at the School of Fine Arts. It was at this very school that Picasso honed his extraordinary skill as a draftsman. It was also in A Coruña where he started as a painter and had his first exhibition. On a personal level, he lived his first love and faced the death of his little sister, an event that marked his life forever.
Take this chance to follow in the artist's footsteps. The first unmissable stop linked to Picasso from A Coruña is the Picasso Museum House. On the second floor of this building, you can find the home of Picasso and his family. When you visit it, you will have the feeling of entering a typical house in the city in the late 19th century. The house preserves original furniture and objects, reproductions of Picasso's work from A Coruña, and an original engraving by the artist.You can walk to Plaza de Pontevedra, where you will find the Eusebio de Guarda Institute where Picasso enrolled at the age of 10 and where he attended the School of Fine Arts. At the School of Arts and Crafts, you can still find the painter's excellent scores.
More interesting locations? 20 Rúa Real, at the time a furniture shop where Picasso held his first exhibition in 1895. Press reviews were already excellent. He subsequently organised a second exhibition on this street, where he presented Man in Cap, which is now in the Picasso Museum in Paris.Other places linked to Picasso include the Rosalía de Castro Theatre, where Picasso attended shows and painted traditional scenes such as The lottery ticket and A Gentleman Greeting a Lady. And, of course, the Santo Amaro cemetery, one of the most beautiful historic cemeteries in Spain and part of the European Cemeteries Route. This is where the painter's little sister was buried.
In A Coruña, you can explore two particularly beautiful sites, which also dazzled the painter. The famous Riazor Beach, where Picasso enjoyed children's games. When you are in front of the sea, imagine the artist trying to capture the colours of the Atlantic and sailors at work. A nice experience.
And the Tower of Hercules. This is undoubtedly the most famous landmark in the entire city. It is the oldest lighthouse in the world and the only one still in service, and has been awarded the World Heritage designation by the UNESCO. The views from here are unique, and Picasso also enjoyed them. In fact, he included the Tower of Hercules (or “Tower of Candy”, as his father called it) in many of his drawings and oil paintings.“It is the city where my senses were awakened, and that is something that neither time nor distance can erase”, said the artist many years after leaving A Coruña. Are you ready to discover it too?
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