About us
The Círculo de Bellas Artes of Madrid (CBA) is a private, not-for-profit cultural institution. Ever since it was set up in 1880, it has played a major role of international scope in the field of cultural creation and diffusion.
The CBA is a major multidisciplinary centre with one of the most active cultural programmes in Madrid. It has exhibition rooms, a cinema, a theatre, concert halls, lecture halls, artists’ workshops, a library, a cafeteria, a rooftop and many other facilities. Every day it puts on activities to do with the visual arts, music, film, the stage, literature, science, philosophy and poetry.
The building which houses the Círculo de Bellas Artes was designed by the architect Antonio Palacios and constructed in 1926. It is an emblematic building and from its rooftop you can enjoy some of the best views of Spain’s capital city.
Exhibitions
The Círculo de Bellas Artes has four exhibition rooms with a stable programme in which both well-established figures and emerging artists are represented every year: August Sander, Donna Ferrato, Andréi Tarkovski, Francis Bacon, Robert Capa, Saul Bass, Pierre Bourdieu, Georges Perec, Le Corbussier, Picasso, Jean Arp, Silvia Plachy, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Henri Michaux, Ricardo Piglia, Hans Hartung, Bruno Schulz, Pierre Klossowski, Nacho Criado, Basilio Martín Patino, Zaj, Jean Dubuffet, Mário Cesariny, Brassaï. [...]
Humanities
The Círculo de Bellas Artes is a meeting point for thought, the sciences, literature, philosophy and the arts. The conferences, talks, discussions and poetry recitals that are organised on a daily basis have involved leading figures from the world of culture such as Vandana Shiva, Naomi Klein, Aki Kaurismäki, Georges Didi-Huberman, Gianni Vattimo, Günter Grass, Seamus Heaney, Jürgen Habermass, Rafael Alberti, George Steiner, Slavoj Žižek, Claudio Magris, Antonio Gamoneda, Hans Magnus Enzensberger, Cees Nooteboom, Manoel de Oliveira, Jean Baudrillard, Umberto Eco, Juan Gelman, John Berger, Ernesto Sábato, Álvaro Siza, Carlos Fuentes and Edward Said. [...]
Shows
The Círculo de Bellas Artes programmes a wide variety of music, encompassing both classical and contemporary highbrow music, and the more innovative styles of popular music. Those who have performed here include Pierre Boulez, Ana Tijoux, Jean-Michel Blais, Niño de Elche, Luis de Pablo, Lila Downs, Tiken Jah Fakoly, Eliane Elías, Jorge Pardo, Marianne Faithfull, Vinicio Capossela, Jane Birkin, María Joao and Chano Lobato. In addition, each season the Círculo de Bellas Artes presents a prestigious programme of theatre and dance. [...]
Films
The Círculo de Bellas Artes has a film theatre which almost every day shows original-language films that are not normally seen in commercial cinemas. Its retrospectives and dedicated cycles are a must for film-lovers in Madrid. [...]