A gift from TBA21 will add more than 180 contemporary artworks, valued at €16 million, to Madrid’s Museo Nacional Thyssen Bornemisza. The museum also plans a public venue in the former Palacio del Hielo y del Automóvil, with doors expected to open in 2031.
Ministers Arcadi España and Ernest Urtasun announced the donation alongside Francesca Thyssen Bornemisza. The gift comes with no financial conditions and includes a loan of nearly 180 additional works valued at €10 million. Add in a long-term loan of historical pieces already at the museum, valued at €70 million, and TBA21’s total commitment to the Spanish state approaches €100 million.
RTVE reported that the Spanish government has allocated more than €70 million to renovate the Palacio del Hielo y del Automóvil, the future home of the new venue.
The new art space is being designed as a public institution in its own right, not an extension of the current museum. It will bring contemporary art into conversation with ecology and invite civic participation. The building will also become the Madrid base for the Centro Memorial de las Víctimas del Terrorismo, bringing cultural and social programs under one roof.
Francesca Thyssen Bornemisza described the donation as part of a family tradition, calling a collection “a conversation with the world” rather than a private asset. The selection includes works by Ai Weiwei and Marina Abramović, as well as John Akomfrah, Olafur Eliasson, Joan Jonas and Bill Viola. The works span installations and sculpture, alongside photography, performance and digital art.
The museum’s leadership wants it to become more accessible and relevant, as well as larger. Director Ernest Urtasun said the new venue will ease crowding at the Palacio de Villahermosa. It will also provide dedicated spaces for education and research, alongside facilities for conservation and public programs. Artistic director Guillermo Solana traced the project’s roots to 2008; the first joint exhibition with TBA21 took place in 2018.
EFE reported that some media sources put the total number of works involved in the deal at 350, while others specify 186 donated works and 179 on long-term loan. The difference comes from how sources count the package, not from a contradiction.
Community involvement is central to the project. The museum plans to work with local residents to decide how the building will be used. The site is also intended to serve as a climate refuge for vulnerable groups during extreme heat, putting ecological responsibility into practice. An international architecture competition is planned for early 2027, and the venue is due to reopen in 2031.
The move extends the Thyssen Bornemisza family’s collecting tradition into a fourth generation and strengthens the museum’s role in contemporary art. The new collection is described as a record of how the world sees itself today, shaped by ecological ideas and oceanic knowledge, as well as Indigenous perspectives that inform political ecologies. For Spain, it is rare for a private collection of this size and value to become public, setting a new standard for cultural ambition and partnership in the country’s museum sector.
