In 2016, a museum opened its doors in Amsterdam with the firm commitment to exhibit a collection of iconic works by internationally renowned authors and growing urban, modern, and contemporary art artists, the Moco Museum. It is located in Villa Alsberg, no less than in the Museumplein ---the center of Amsterdam's museum square--- next to the city's three major exhibition centers (the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh, and the Stedelijk) and the Concertgebouw concert hall.
Two million people from more than 120 countries have already passed through the halls of the Dutch city, a well-earned success that brings us the opening of a new headquarters in Barcelona, also in an important historical, cultural, and tourist enclave, such as Montcada street, next to the Picasso Museum. And it seems they have come to stay, at least, for the next 20 years, which is the time for which they have rented the historic Palau Cervelló. A 15th-century Gothic facade palace that was extensively reformed in the following century and belonged to the Cervelló family until the 18th century. A building that also housed the prestigious Maeght art gallery between 1974 and 2012, and which in 2015 wanted to be absorbed by the Picasso Museum, although negotiations were halted by an agreement with another artistic entity, the Fundació Gaspar, which disappeared in 2017.
Lionel and Kim Logchies are the founders of this private initiative, which not only draws from its own collection but also features loaned artworks thanks to the international network of art lovers and collectors with whom they collaborate. From the museum, they comment that "our founding spirit has always been to see the world so enlightened that peace and unity are inevitable," which is why they aim to democratize art and make it accessible and inclusive to the widest possible audience, while also seeking to provide a unique experience.
"We represent the voice of the people and trust in art as a way to help us get here"Idea that is also reflected in the buildings chosen to be its headquarters, mansions reserved for a privileged elite that open their doors to everyone: "We represent the voice of the people and we trust in art as a way to help get here," its founders state. "We want people to leave moved, for art to also serve to enjoy and think," points out the center's director, Birthe Faessen, and we will find a clear example not only in the commitment to the exhibited pieces but also in their thematic organization. Thus, in the Moco Museum of Barcelona we will find radical artistic leaders andinfluencers of the new movements in the art world, such as urban art, pop art, or new unclassifiable currents in the changing landscape of technology and art, such as NFT (non-fungible token), unique digital works, and immersive experiences. General tickets ---sold online--- are priced at 16.5 euros, and children up to 12 years old enter for free.
The Moco Museum collection is divided into different blocks:
- Moco Masters – Modern. It is dedicated to masters, to leaders, to those who consider that they have opened the way, the visionaries. Here we will find great names such as Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Damien Hirst, Keith Haring, Takashi Murakami or Yayoi Kusama, among others.
- Moco Masters – Contemporary. Here we will see the new generation, the next masters who are already leaving their mark with their pieces. All of them have in common that they challenge the norm and invite us to reflect and question the world around us. Kaws, Hayden Kays, David LaChapelle or our Yago Hortal are some of the names we will find in this category.
- Banksy. One of the great attractions of the collection shown by the Moco Museum is that of the mysterious and admired urban artist Banksy. Despite not being authorized or curated in collaboration with the artist, all the exhibited works have the certificate of authenticity that only Pest Control, the only official entity that certifies Banksy's works, can provide, and it is articulated as a tribute to one of the urban phenomena of our time.
- Digital immersive art. This trend of new technologies in art that achieves so much success, we will also find it at the Barcelona headquarters with three proposals, each more spectacular. Hand in hand with teamLab, Les Fantômes and Studio Irma, we will be able to immerse ourselves in this new artistic medium that activates us multisensorially and enhances our artistic experience.
- NFT. With the aim of reaching the widest possible audience and offering them the most current artistic trends, the first exhibition space in Europe dedicated to the NFT phenomenon is opening, atypical digital works by pioneering artists in their discipline, which show us the future of digital art. To give us an idea, non-fungible tokens are cryptographic assets that digitally assign ownership, in such a way that they cannot be easily reproduced, and although we can see and download them, only the buyer can claim ownership. With them, a new paradigm has opened in the world of the digital art market that the Moco Museum wants to show us, before anyone else. Here we will discover artists like Beeple, Alotta Money or Andrés Reisinger.
But in addition to everything this center offers us, temporary exhibitions will also have significant weight and value, starting with the first one we can visit, curated by the legendary auctioneer and art dealer Simon de Pury—one of the most important figures in the art world—dedicated to Chilean artist Guillermo Lorca. Esplendor de la Noche will be the painter's first solo exhibition in Europe, a work full of realism and magic, beauty and brutality.
This new Moco Museum venue in Barcelona is a very strong bet and a much-needed attraction for a city like the Catalan capital. A consolidated project backed by its international success, which we have no doubt will bring great joy to the world of art and culture.
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