For many, a vacation in Málaga includes a museum visit to the Picasso Museum, Alcazaba and Pompidou. Málaga has 40 museums, so there are many more to explore. Here’s a guide to five overlooked ones worth visiting.
1 Classic cars and haute couture
Although many people have discovered the Automobile Museum in Malaga, there are still many who don’t know it exists, which is a shame.
The Museo Automovilístico de Málaga is a paradise for those who love iconic cars with history, haute couture dresses and hats, and graphic design.
The Museo Automovilístico de Málaga is a paradise for those who love iconic cars with history, haute couture dresses and hats, and graphic design.
Located in the city’s former tobacco factory from the 1920s, the Automobile Museum in Malaga features 100 exclusive cars and 200 pieces of haute couture taking you through the history of cars and fashion.
The museum is divided into seven themed areas, beginning with La belle époque and continuing through the golden 1920s, art deco, popular middle-class cars, designer cars, American dream cars, alternative energies and tuning.
The latter is an art form that originated in the USA where old cars are converted into works of art.
The oldest car is from 1898 and the newest from 2011.
The exhibition also features cars that have been used by celebrities.
See the Mercedes used by Heinrich Himmler on his wedding day, John Lennon’s psychedelic Rolls Royce from the 1960s and Michael Jackson’s black Silver Cloud studded with Swarovski crystals.
Avoid standing in line. Buy your ticket to the Automobile Museum in Malaga here (advertising link)
Museo Automovilístico de Málaga, Av de Sor Teresa Prat 15
2 A world of glass and crystal
The Museum of Glass and Crystal is one of the museums in Málaga that is easy to miss because it is located on a corner, away from the popular streets of downtown Málaga. If you like glass and crystal, don’t miss a guided tour of this small museum with a very nice collection.
The Museo del Vidrio y Cristal is housed in a privately owned 18th century mansion that the owner, González, has converted into a private home.
The exhibition is gathered in three rooms, which are set up as living rooms with around 1,000 pieces of glass and crystal, out of a collection of 3,000, arranged between furniture, paintings and trinkets in different time periods. The whole concept is to give visitors insight into our history through glass and the techniques of glass art through time. Glass and crystals include everything from vases and bowls to sculptures and ornate windows.
In the courtyard with columns and arches are glass cases with vases and bowls from the 1950s to the 1970s (including several Nordic ones). Among them you will find Danish Per Lütcken’s green orchid vase.
Museo del Vidrio y Cristal, Plazuela Santísimo Cristo de la Sangre 2
3 Avant-garde art in Malaga’s Soho
On the edge of Málaga’s Soho neighborhood, on the dried-up Guadalmedina riverbed, is the contemporary art museum, Centro de Arte Contemporáneo de Málaga, CAC.
CAC Málaga opened in 2003 on the initiative of the Málaga City Council.
The museum houses art from the 20. and 21st century. CAC Malaga stands out from the crowd as it is the only museum in Malaga that has chosen to match the tone set by the diverse street art found in the neighborhood.
The permanent collection includes the ‘Neighbors IV’ series, which includes paintings, sculptures, photographs and drawings created by local artists.
In addition, there are changing exhibitions by both local and international artists.
Several of them have never been exhibited before.
CAC Málaga, Calle Alemania
4 Malaga expressionist
Museo Jorge Rando stands out from other museums in Malaga because it is the first and only expressionist museum in the city and the rest of Spain. It is dedicated to local artist Jorge Rando (b. 1941), who both paints and makes sculptures.
Giant sculptures of children, men and a pregnant woman mix with neo-expressionist, philosophical paintings where the colors white, neon green and magenta are common throughout the exhibition. Expressionism has many faces, and it is these many facets that Museo Jorge Rando wants to highlight.
The modern museum building is part of the convent of Las Mercedarias, which blends well with an artist seeking deeper understanding of topics such as philosophy, theology and human humiliation and suffering.
Although Jorge Rando’s works take up most of the exhibition space, there is also room for works by other expressionist artists from around the world. The museum also has an open studio where artists can work and visitors can watch.
Museo Jorge Rando, Calle Cruz del Molinillo 12
5 Private collection of Spanish art
The Carmen Thyssen Museum is located in the renovated 16th-century Villalón mansion, in Plaza Carmen Thyssen in Málaga’s Moorish quarter.
The private collection consists of 240 works that take you through Spanish art, especially Andalusian, from the
19th to the early 20th century. They belong to Carmen Cervera, wife of Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza, whose family collection can be seen in Madrid.
Highlights include ‘Rocas de Jávea y el bote blanco’ (The rocks of Jávea and the white boat) by Joaquín Sorolla and ‘Una cofradía pasando por la calle Gènova, Sevilla’ (Brotherhood in procession on calle Gènova, Sevilla) by Alfred Dehodencq.
The latter is part of the museum’s fine collection of ‘custumbrismo’, a sentimental representation of Spanish landscapes, flamenco, fiestas, bandits and bullfights.
Skip the queue anf buy ticket online. (advertising link)
Museo Carmen Thyssen, Calle Compañía 10
More travel tips for Malaga
Find more inspiration for your vacation in Malaga in the city guide.
If you like street art, visit Malaga’s Soho neighborhood.
Do you know where to eat in Malaga?
Find inspiration in the food guides for restaurants and cafes in Malaga.
