Lee’s World
Bilbao
Bilbao is a town I had
wanted to visit for a long time, simply to visit Frank Gehry's amazing
Guggenheim Building.
The
opportunity arose in June 2007 and I leapt at the chance.
So I flew to Bilbao for a couple of days to explore what has been described as the greatest building of the 20th Century. The experience was similar to one I had at the Guggenheim New York, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright - the building won, and the art exhibits, whilst interesting, competed with the sculpture in which they were housed.
What an amazing space -
walking around the building, it looks like anything from a whale to the
folds of Marilyn
Monroe's dress, to a ship, to whatever your imagination runs to. Inside, as
well as Richard Serra's Matter of Time and a few other permanent pieces,
there was an exhibit of Anselm Keefer's work. And at the front of the
building - or was it the back of the building, Jeff Koon's fabulous puppy
sculpture covered in flowers standing guard.
Bilbao has been
transformed by the
Guggenheim,
which is now 10 years old, and revived itself with some brilliant modern
architecture and sculpture - from Calatrava's pedestrian bridge over the
river, or his new airport in the shape of a dove, to the modern riverside
concert hall, the pop art numeric and love sculptures by Robert Indiana, and
the metro entrances designed by Norman Foster.
For the weekend I stayed at the Sheraton Hotel, only five minutes walk along the riverside from the Guggenheim. It was very comfortable and I'd stay there again - another well designed modern building.
Bilbao is not all about modern though as it has a traditional old city, with narrow streets, traditional buildings and a plaza full of cafes where people watch the world go by.
Bilbao was a real surprise - a pleasant small city with so much to offer. Well worth a visit - I know I missed out on sights having spent so much time at the Guggenheim, but it's not something I regret for one instant!