Barcelona Guide
The northern suburbs
Museu de Ceràmica
Address: Palau Reial de Pedralbes, Avinguda Diagonal
Opening time: Tues– Sat 10am–6pm, Sun & hols 10am–3pm
Price: €4.20, valid for all Palau Reial de Pedralbes museums; free first Sun of month
Website: www.museuceramica.bcn.cat
The collection at the Museu de Ceràmica ranges from the thirteenth to the nineteenth century, and includes fine Moorish-influenced tiles and plates from the Aragonese town of Teruel, as well as a series of fifteenth- and sixteenth-century socarrats (decorated terracotta panels) from Paterno displaying demons and erotic scenes. Catalunya, too, has a long ceramics tradition, and there are entire rooms here of Catalan water stoups, jars, dishes, plates and bowls.
Perhaps the most vivid examples of the polychromatic work coming out of Barcelona and Lleida workshops of the time are the two extensive azulejo (ceramic tile) panels of 1710, one showing a Madrid bullfight, the other the feasting and dancing taking place at a party centred on the craze of the period – hot-chocolate-drinking. In the modern section, Picasso, Miró and the modernista artist Antoni Serra i Fiter are all represented. The whole display is considerably more interesting than the bare recital of exhibits suggests, particularly if you're already fascinated by the diverse ceramic designs and embellishments that adorn so many of the city's buildings, old and new.