Fine Arts Museum and Doña Casilda Park

Before you is one of the most complete art museums in Spain. The Bilbao Fine Arts Museum was founded in 1908 and opened in 1914, thanks above all to the bequest of the businessman Laureano de Jado. Its collection runs from the 13th century to the present: El Greco, Zurbarán, Goya, Gauguin, Francis Bacon and the great names of Basque art, such as Zuloaga, Oteiza and Chillida.

1Three buildings in one

The stone-and-brick building, with Neoclassical lines, was completed in 1945 to a design by Fernando Urrutia and Gonzalo Cárdenas. In 1970 a modern glass-and-metal wing was added. And in 2026 the Agravitas extension by Norman Foster and Luis María Uriarte was completed: a large roof that seems to float above the old buildings, plus new galleries. The reopening has been staggered, so check which spaces are open.

2The widow of Epalza

The park is named after Casilda de Iturrizar (1818-1900). Born into a modest family, she worked as a young woman as a servant in the house of the merchant Tomás José de Epalza, one of the founders of the Banco de Bilbao, whom she married in 1859. When he died she inherited one of the largest fortunes in town and devoted much of it to schools, hospitals and charities. Locals also call it the “duck park”, after its pond.

3What to look for

• The word “MVSEO”, with a Latin-style V, above the old entrance.
• The roof of Foster’s extension.
• The duck pond at the heart of the park.