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The Banyoles Art Center is born with the Gimferrer Collection, a new cultural hub of reference
The new facility, located in Plaça Major, exhibits a selection of works from one of the most outstanding private collections in the country and reinforces the city's artistic ambition.
The Banyoles Art Center is now a reality. Inaugurated today in the Plaça Major, this new facility joins the network of municipal museums with the aim of becoming a reference space for the plastic and visual arts, consolidating the city's role as an emerging cultural focus.
The center hosts a semi-permanent exhibition consisting of 76 works selected from the 136 that make up the donation of Jordi Gimferrer, one of the most important private collections in Catalonia. The set brings together fundamental pieces from the history of art of the 19th and 20th centuries, with essential names such as Joan Miró, Antoni Tàpies, Pablo Picasso, Eduardo Chillida and Miquel Barceló. Artists from other periods are also represented, such as Rembrandt and Francisco de Goya, as well as a prominent presence of African and Oriental art and pieces of Egyptian, Greek and Roman antiquities.
This project is the result of an agreement signed in December 2022 between the Banyoles City Council and the Gimferrer family, through which the collector transferred his collection with the commitment that it would be publicly exhibited within a period of three years. For decades, Gimferrer had kept the works in his own home, converted into a true exhibition space where every corner —from the kitchen to the bathroom— breathed art.
The inauguration of the center marks the culmination of a vital project that began in the 1950s, when Gimferrer, then a Chemistry student at the University of Barcelona, began acquiring the first pieces. Over time, this passion would transform into a collection of high artistic and heritage value.
The new facility is being built, however, with a future in mind. A second phase of expansion is already planned, which will include a temporary exhibition hall, open to contemporary and local creation, as well as a space dedicated to educational programs. The aim is to bring art and heritage closer to all audiences and strengthen the educational offer of the city's museums.
In addition, the Art Center will be connected to the Monastery of Sant Esteve, which will also host temporary exhibitions and activities related to the visual arts. With this new project, Banyoles consolidates a heritage axis in the urban center and takes a decisive step towards its projection as a first-class cultural and artistic destination.
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