Museos y Exposiciones

The Pablo Gargallo Museum

On 19th May 1982, Pierrette Gargallo de Anguera and Ramón Sainz de Varanda signed the agreement by which the Pablo Gargallo Museum was founded, setting out the commitments and undertakings of each of the parties: Pablo Gargallo´s heirs were to donate sculptures, drawings, cardboard templates and biobliographical documentation and Zaragoza Town Council was to restore the Argillo Palace to house the museum, which would be owned by the municipal authorities.

When the Museum was inaugurated on 8th July 1985 its collections were truly representative of the artist´s work - a criterion that was also applied in later acquisitions. The collections comprise 82 sculptures, 12 sets of cardboard templates, 70 drawings, 4 engraving plates, 3 examples of these and 2 jewels, which belong to all of the periods of Gargallo´s trajectory and represent most of the themes, materials and techniques which define it.

As well as creating a Documentation Fund, since 1986 Zaragoza Town Council has carried out an extensive programme of activities for the Museum, with special emphasis on didactical initiatives and the staging of temporary exhibitions, particularly those concerned with contemporary sculpture.

Argillo Palace

The building was planned by Juan de Mondragón as an extension to the houses of Don Francisco Sanz de Cortés, and was built, in the style of the Renaissance palaces, between 1659 and 1661, the final stages of the work being directed by Felipe Busiñac y Borbón. The façade shows the characteristic use of facing bricks, a gallery of false arches and prominently jutting carved wood eaves.

In 1837 the Countess of Argillo inherited the palace and from 1860 onwards, the Colegio de San Felipe rented it for almost a century. In 1943 it was declared a National Monument and, until Zaragoza Town Council acquired it in 1977, it was also the headquarters of the ONCE (Spanish Blind Association).

The total restoration and rehabilitation work on the Pablo Gargallo Museum was completed in May 1985. In 2001 the heating and air-conditioning systems were replaced and a translucent roof was fitted over the central courtyard.