Reina Sofia Tickets

Paintings by Salvador Dalí

The museum holds a public collection of works by Salvador Dalí that documents his stylistic development. A central piece is The Great Masturbator (1929), an autobiographical artwork built from soft, melting forms. It hangs near the earlier Figure at a Window (1925), which depicts his sister looking at the sea in Cadaqués.

The exhibition also includes the Portrait of Luis Buñuel (1924), which uses geometric volumes derived from cubism. Additionally, The Invisible Man (1929-1932) illustrates the start of his paranoiac-critical method, employing double images to produce different optical readings on the same canvas.

Photo: "Reina Sofía Museum: Dalí: Face of the Great Masturbator" by Wolf Gang.

Works by Joan Miró

Joan Miró's canvases add colour and play to the collection. The strongest works date from the 1930s, when Miró stripped his figures to floating signs, biomorphic shapes and flat fields of colour, as in Painting (Snail, Woman, Flower, Star) (1934) and Painting (Swallow) (1937). The Miró galleries sit close to those of Picasso and Dalí, the three Spanish modern masters at the core of the museum.

His production also extends into the Sabatini Building's courtyard garden, which features the bronze sculpture Oiseau lunaire (Moon Bird). This same outdoor area displays Alexander Calder's sculpture, Carmen, visible in the background.

Photo: "The museum garden (Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid)" by Jean-Pierre Dalbéra/Magnus Manske.

The Spanish avant-garde

Beyond the three central figures, the collection covers the broader Spanish avant-garde movement. Juan Gris contributed to the development of Cubism with his structured compositions, while Julio González pioneered welded iron sculpture.

The same galleries display works by female artists who were excluded from standard historical narratives for decades. This section includes Maruja Mallo's The Fair, which depicts popular urban culture, and Ángeles Santos's canvas A World (1929), which combines elements of surrealism and magic realism. Together, these rooms place the evolution of Spanish art within the context of European modernism during the early twentieth century.

Photo: "Ángeles Santos Torroella - A World (1929)" by Iso Brown FR.

The Sabatini and Nouvel Buildings

The Reina Sofía Museum operates across two distinct, interconnected structures that highlight the contrast between historical and contemporary architecture. The Sabatini Building, an eighteenth-century former hospital, serves as the historic venue. This section contains the core permanent collection and features a central courtyard garden.

Conversely, the Nouvel Building represents a modern expansion designed by architect Jean Nouvel. Characterized by its signature red canopy, it houses contemporary installations, temporary exhibitions, a library, and a cafeteria. Both locations feature independent entrance gates.

Closing days & special dates

Visitors to the Reina Sofía Museum must consider its specific holiday and maintenance closures. The institution routinely shuts its doors every Tuesday for weekly upkeep.

Beyond this regular schedule, the museum remains completely closed on several national public holidays, including January 1 and 6, alongside May 1. The galleries also close during the winter festive season on December 24, 25, and 31. Furthermore, local regional holidays on May 15 and November 9 cause temporary closures, although these two dates are subject to change based on the active labor calendar of the Community of Madrid.

How to get there

The museum sits at Calle de Santa Isabel 52, at the southern tip of Madrid's Paseo del Arte. The closest metro is Estación del Arte on Line 1, a few minutes' walk away; Lavapiés on Line 3 is a second nearby stop.

Atocha's mainline and Cercanías commuter station stands a short walk away. Many EMT buses stop outside, including the 6, 10, 14, 19, 26, 27, 37, 41, C1 and E1. BiciMad docking stations 50 and 51 sit by both entrances.

Entrances

The main site has two access points, and both start the same visit route:

• The Sabatini Building is the historic main entrance, reached from Plaza de Juan Goytisolo at Calle de Santa Isabel 52.
• The Nouvel Building has its own entrance through the courtyard at Ronda de Atocha 2, and it usually draws fewer visitors, so it suits anyone holding an online ticket.

Either door gives an online ticket holder direct entry with the confirmation, without a stop at the ticket desk.