Barcelona Unveils a Bold Museum of Forbidden Art
In Barcelona, a provocative new museum project brings together more than 200 works from Tatxo Benet’s extensive collection, now on public display free of charge. The Museum of Forbidden Art curates pieces that have challenged censorship across decades, from sharply political critiques to fearless examinations of religion. One emblematic example is León Ferrari’s The West and Christian Civilization from 2004, a work Ferrar I described as blasphemous. A note from a performative photograph by Andrés Serrano, showing a cross submerged in urine, amplified the controversy surrounding the piece, echoing the public outcry that followed Piss Christ in 1987. The collection also includes Inés Doujak’s Undressed to Conquer, a provocative statue that sparked debate within Spain’s art scene and sparked conversations about censorship and power. The show, featuring more than 200 works, is presented as an ongoing conversation about what art can say and how societies react to unsettling imagery.
The institution is housed in a landmark Barcelona site: the Garriga Nogués house, a modernist building erected between 1899 and 1901 under the direction of architect Enric Sagnier. Formerly home to the Mapfre Foundation, the space has been refurbished to host a multifaceted exhibition center spanning about two thousand square meters. Across two floors, visitors encounter paintings, sculptures, installations, audiovisual works, engravings, and photographs by celebrated artists including Picasso, Ai Weiwei, Banksy, Robert Mapplethorpe, Tania Bruguera, Miquel Barceló, and Andy Warhol. The show foregrounds stories of forbidden narratives, with works addressing political, social, sexual, and religious censorship.
The project emphasizes that the pieces span much of the modern era, extending into the 21st century while recalling earlier periods such as the 18th-century Enlightenment. The exhibition includes the Caprichos that Goya withdrew from sale under pressure from the Inquisition, a reminder of how fear shapes artistic production. The project’s artistic director notes that the collection links the past and the present by presenting works that critique institutions and social norms. The aim is to reveal a critical capacity that has sparked debate about the role of art in challenging authority and exposing social vice.
The Reina Sofía Museum contributed a substantial loan to strengthen the Museum of Forbidden Art, with Rosa Rodríguez overseeing the initiative. Benet’s broader plan includes ongoing acquisitions and collaborations, along with regional travel programs and loans to other centers. In a notable moment, he purchased Santiago Sierra’s Political Prisoners in Contemporary Spain, a 24-photograph work created for ARCO in Madrid, which recorded the incarceration of key Catalan figures during the Procés. After a brief display, it was censored and removed, a turning point that underscores the ongoing tension between censorship and artistic visibility. The work, featuring images of Oriol Junqueras, Jordi Cuixart, and Jordi Sànchez, has found a home on loan at the Lleida Museum and is part of a wider conversation about political expression in art. Benet continues to anticipate future presentations in Barcelona and beyond.
At ARCO, Benet added Pere Llovera to the collection, recognizing the solidarity shown by artists who withdrew works in support of Sierra. Bouabdellah’s Silence rouge et bleu, which comments on women’s status in Arab societies, drew particular attention. It features thirty shiny stilettos arranged on thirty prayer rugs, a striking installation that resonated with public debate surrounding tolerance, gender, and religious custom. The piece was displayed in public spaces after similar works faced removal due to sensitivity around religious caricature and the potential for violent reactions. The museum’s curatorial team pressed for a nuanced presentation that invites dialogue rather than outrage.
The curators acknowledge that censorship persists in many forms and that imagining a world without censorship is difficult. The artistic director explains that the museum aims to go beyond showcasing works, offering visitors a full experience through free guides and an accompanying app. The project chronicles a wide range of stories and exhibitions that address controversy, censorship, and the power of art to provoke thought.
Some pieces explore women’s bodies in the Arab world, while others reference conservative backlashes in the United States during the 1980s. The stairs of the Garriga Nogués house showcase powerful portraits by Zanele Muholi, a South African visual artist who documents black LGBTQ+ life and challenges intolerance. A large sculpture by the Crónica Team sits near the entrance, symbolizing the ongoing friction between censorship and creative expression. The exhibition also features works that critique political figures and regimes through satire and allegory, including a contemporary portrayal of a Francoist figure within a Coca‑Cola refrigerator and a nod to Damien Hirst’s shark with a David Cerny flourish.
As part of the museum’s mission, the roster of works is refreshed annually to keep conversations current while offering a broadened view of artistic censorship. The Benet collection’s ongoing evolution is paired with travel programs and loans to other cultural centers, widening access to these controversial voices. General admission remains accessible, with pricing designed to welcome curious visitors and scholars alike.
The exhibition space also hosts a rotating display of posters denouncing global injustices. The collection pays tribute to a long lineage of artists who have used their work to challenge power, including Picasso, Miró, Tàpies, Botero, and Calder, among others. This is a space where controversy is not just tolerated but celebrated as a catalyst for conversation and reflection. Visitors are invited to explore, question, and engage with art that tests boundaries and invites viewers to consider the moral and political dimensions of the works on view.