In honour of Antoni Tàpies’ centennial (1923–2012), the Museo Reina Sofía and Fundació Antoni Tàpies stage one of the artist’s most comprehensive exhibitions to date, featuring over 220 pieces from public and private collections worldwide that illuminate his career trajectory from 1943 to 2012. The show is stunning and worth a visit to Madrid and is curated by Manuel Borja-Villel.

Antoni Tàpies refined a visual language inspired by a wide range of sources that coalesce into a complex fusion of materials, gestures, and symbols. His exploration of Surrealist imagery early in his career served as the foundation for an ongoing investigation into the nature of physical objects and their materiality. Tàpies’ work embodied his extensive personal experience and history, and of his native Spain and specifically Catalonia. As Tàpies’ use of tangible materials for making art emphasize physical transformation, spiritual transformation is evoked through signs and symbols drawn from Eastern and Western cultures.

This remarkable, fascinating and dense exhibition celebrates Tàpies’s work and influences in contemporary art history by showcasing a selection of his prolific career’s works, some of which haven’t been seen together in years. It’s on view at Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid until 24 June 2024 before travelling to Barcelona, at Fundació Antoni Tàpies, from 17 July 2024 to 13 January 2025.

Image: View of the exhibition Antoni Tàpies. The Practice of Art, 2024