Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SIGHTS
GALLERY
CAIXAFORUM
dia 6-8; adult/student & child €4/free, 1st Sun of month free;
10am-8pm Mon-Fri, to 9pm Sat & Sun;
; Espanya)
The Caixa building society prides itself on its involvement in (and ownership of) art, in par-
ticular all that is contemporary. Its premier art expo space in Barcelona hosts part of the
bank's extensive collection from around the globe. The setting is a completely renovated
former factory, the Fàbrica Casaramona, an outstanding Modernista brick structure designed
by Puig i Cadafalch. From 1940 to 1993 it housed the First Squadron of the police cavalry
unit - 120 horses in all.
Now it is home to a major exhibition space. On occasion portions of La Caixa's own col-
lection of 800 works of modern and contemporary art go on display, but more often than not
major international exhibitions are the key draw.
In the courtyard where the police horses used to drink is a steel tree designed by the
Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. Musical recitals are sometimes held in the museum, espe-
cially in the warmer months.
FORTRESS, GARDENS
CASTELL DE MONTJUÏC
adult/concessions/child €5/€3/free, free Sun pm & 1st Sun of month;
10am-8pm;
150, Telefèric
de Montjuïc, Castell de Montjuïc)
This forbidding
castell
(castle or fort) dominates the southeastern heights of Montjuïc and
enjoys commanding views over the Mediterranean. It dates, in its present form, from the late
17th and 18th centuries. For most of its dark history, it has been used to watch over the city
and as a political prison and killing ground.
Anarchists were executed here around the end of the 19th century, fascists during the civil
war and Republicans after it - most notoriously Lluís Companys in 1940. The castle is sur-
rounded by a network of ditches and walls (from which its strategic position over the city
and port become clear).
Until 2009 the castle was home to a somewhat fusty old military museum, closed since
the Ministry of Defence handed the fortress over to the city after protracted negotiations, al-
though it is currently undergoing renovations and will be used as exhibition space. The artil-
