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Reina Sofía's Director Manuel Segade Leads Museum Transformation, Spotlighting Overlooked Artists

institutional · 2026-04-07

Since 2023, Manuel Segade has been at the helm of Madrid's Museo Reina Sofía, spearheading a significant transformation expected to conclude by 2028. The museum's newly reopened fourth floor presents 'Contemporary Art: 1975-Present,' featuring 403 artworks from 224 artists, with 258 pieces (64%) previously unseen. Segade highlights the contributions of lesser-known artists such as Paz Muro and Isidoro Valcárcel Medina, as well as women artists like Paloma Navares and Salomé Cuesta. The exhibition is organized into three thematic paths: 'A History of Affect in Contemporary Art,' 'The Powers of Fiction,' and 'A New Framework.' Notably, women artists represent 35% of the exhibition, a record for the museum. The transformation also includes the renovation of the Sabatini and Nouvel buildings, with Picasso's 'Guernica' as a focal point.

Key facts

  • Manuel Segade became director of Museo Reina Sofía in 2023
  • The museum is undergoing a transformation scheduled to complete in 2028
  • The fourth floor exhibition 'Contemporary Art: 1975-Present' features 403 works by 224 artists
  • 258 works (64%) in the exhibition have never been publicly displayed before
  • Women artists represent 69 of 173 featured creators (approximately 35%)
  • The museum's broader collection of 26,000 works contains only 15% by women artists
  • The exhibition presents three thematic routes instead of a linear timeline
  • Pablo Picasso's 'Guernica' (1937) remains a central attraction at the museum

Entities

Artists

Institutions

Locations

  • Madrid
  • Spain
  • Guernica
  • Venice
  • Italy
  • France
  • Barcelona
  • Valencia
  • Bilbao
  • Lima
  • Peru
  • Cuba
  • New York
  • Buenos Aires
  • Argentina
  • Genoa
  • Rome
  • Paris
  • Palacio de Cristal
  • Parque del Retiro
  • Palacio de Velázquez
  • Sabatini building
  • La Coruña
  • Móstoles
  • Edificio Sabbatini
  • Oslo
  • Shanghai
  • Palermo
  • Milano

Sources