The year 2023, which has just begun, brings with it a very special event: the 50th anniversary of the death of the universal Málaga painter Pablo Picasso. Málaga will host events and exhibitions on this special occasion, as will other countries around the world. 

Throughout 2023, the capital of the Costa del Sol is planning an extensive programme of cultural activities, gastronomic experiences and special cultural and tourist materials and resources, including the publication of a booklet of educational materials to bring the figure of Pablo Picasso to children, thus promoting the link between the artist and his native city.

In addition, a free audio guide will be made available to visitors with information on all the places that, in one way or another, formed part of the artist's life, as well as new signage on the city's Picasso Route.

Thus, the metaverse will also be the protagonist in 2023, as it will host an immersive cultural tourism experience in the world of the author from Málaga.

There will also be a traditional Picassian bullfight and a photography competition.

Exclusive exhibitions

In 2023 Málaga will also be offering exhibitions on the figure of Pablo Picasso in several of its museums.

Until 23 May, the Museo Casa Natal Picasso is hosting the exhibition 'The last face and the aphonia of the Minotaur,' by the Mallorcan Bernardi Roig. These are three simultaneous exhibitions at the Museo Casa Natal Picasso, the Centre Pompidou Málaga and the Collection of the Russian Museum of St. Petersburg/Málaga. The exhibition consists of drawings, sculptures, light installations, large blocks of coagulated light, text, photography and video.

Thus, the Centre Pompidou Málaga hosts the part entitled 'Occupying the void with blocks of stopped light'; and the Collection of the Russian Museum of St. Petersburg Málaga, 'Dancing the silence of time'.

For its part, the Museo Picasso Málaga is hosting the exhibition 'Dialogues with Picasso. Collection 2020-2023'. The exhibition covers Pablo Picasso's artistic career thematically and chronologically. There are 162 works in addition to the 233 works in the museum's collection.

From 8 May to 10 September 2023, this space will host 'Picasso. Matter and body', the first exclusive exhibition on Picasso's sculpture to be seen in Spain. The exhibition highlights an artistic discipline that the Málaga-born artist considered to be the protagonist of his work.

Also as part of the celebration of the anniversary, from 21 June to 1 October, the museum is exhibiting 'The Ages of Pablo', with pieces from Málaga City Council's municipal collection and other public and private institutions in Spain. It is a chronological and stylistic journey through the work of Picasso through the stages that marked his life.

From 1 October 2023 to 24 March 2024, the space will host 'The Echo of Picasso', which reflects the influence of the painter and his styles on the art of the last century.