Guggenheim Bilbao Turns 25: Celebrations and Permanent Collection Rehang

The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, designed by Frank Gehry and opened on October 18, 1997, celebrates its 25th anniversary. The museum, credited with sparking the 'Bilbao Effect' that transformed the post-industrial city into a major tourist destination, has launched the celebratory program 'Art inspires the future'. This includes a thematic rehang of its permanent collection titled 'Sezioni/Intersezioni' (Sections/Intersections), open until January 22, 2023. The exhibition spans three floors: 'Segnando la storia' (Marking History) on the third floor features works by Sol LeWitt, Lee Krasner, Robert Motherwell, Willem de Kooning, and El Anatsui's 'Rising Sea'; 'Illustrando narrative' (Illustrating Narratives) on the second floor includes Anselm Kiefer, Joseph Beuys, Yves Klein, Francesco Clemente, and Ernesto Neto; 'Vita materiale' (Material Life) on the first floor presents Richard Long, Jannis Kounellis, Yoko Ono, and Yayoi Kusama's 'Infinity Mirrored Room'. Concurrent events include a performance 'Danza de las materialidades mutantes' by Cecilia Bengolea on October 25, 2022, and a large-scale projection 'Immersions' in December 2022. Richard Armstrong, director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, praised the museum as the most important example of urban revitalization through art in the last 50 years. Director Juan Ignacio Vidarte emphasized that the Bilbao model is unique and not replicable.