What is there
to see?

The BAS Museum is located in the heart of Barcelona’s Old Town. It was created on the initiative of a family with a passion for urban art, together with a collector who has spent many years assembling works by some of the most important artists in the field.

Barcelona Art Street Museum – the name may sound a little unusual at first, but it all makes perfect sense once you step inside and look down at the floor. Paved with Barcelona’s iconic panot street tiles, the museum creates the illusion that you’re no longer indoors, but strolling down a street filled with art.

A clever play on words – and perhaps one with a double meaning. After all, the museum is dedicated to street art and urban art. As the curator explains at the beginning of the visit, urban art should not simply be confused with graffiti. Instead, it encompasses artistic expressions that originated in the urban environment, often outside traditional museums and galleries.

The exhibition is divided into seven themed galleries. In addition, there is a space near the entrance dedicated to temporary exhibitions, with a new presentation by emerging artists planned every four months.

In total, the museum displays 35 works by more than 26 national and international artists, exploring themes as diverse as identity, memory, space and social criticism. Each gallery offers a different perspective on an art movement that is anything but uniform, reflecting the remarkable diversity of styles and artistic approaches that define urban art. That’s what makes it so fascinating.

The collection includes paintings, mosaics, spray-painted works, an artwork assembled from discarded materials, another created from textiles, an acid-etched metal plate, a painting combined with ceramics and even a collage made entirely from books.

These three works stood out to us:

Juanjo Surace – We, Robots

These paintings look strangely familiar… Can you recognise the originals?

Surace revisits some of the most iconic masterpieces in art history, reinterpreting them from a contemporary and critical perspective.

Beginning with the Old Masters, the series tells a compelling visual story: from humanity creating robots, to their obedience, the awakening of artificial consciousness, rebellion against humankind, the triumph of the machine and, ultimately, the autopsy and study of a vanished human civilisation. It’s an incredibly thought-provoking series.

The works form part of the museum’s theme “Dialogues between Tradition and the Present”, demonstrating how classical masterpieces can be reimagined to reflect today’s technological world.

Even better, most of the original paintings can be found in museums featured on museos:

The Creation of Adam – Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museums, Rome
Las Meninas by Diego Velázquez – Prado Museum, Madrid
Saturn Devouring His Son by Francisco de Goya – Prado Museum, Madrid
The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Nicolaes Tulp by Rembrandt – Mauritshuis, The Hague
Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix – Louvre Museum, Paris

Vhils – Dwindle Series #2

In the gallery dedicated to “Material, Memory and Territory”, you’ll come across this striking large-scale work by the Portuguese artist Vhils.

As the metal gradually oxidises, the face of an anonymous person slowly emerges from its surface. Through this technique, Vhils brings visibility to the ordinary people who shape the cities they live in but are so often overlooked. His work is a powerful reminder that everyday citizens are just as much a part of a city’s identity as its famous landmarks.

Sebas Velasco – Wherever We Will Roam

The final gallery, “Life, Trace and Impact”, features this captivating painting by Spanish artist Sebas Velasco.

It portrays two young people standing in a suburban neighbourhood at night, far removed from the city’s famous landmarks. Through his masterful use of light and the quiet presence of the two figures, Velasco creates a powerful sense of atmosphere and emotion. We particularly admired the painting’s remarkable realism and the way it draws attention to overlooked urban spaces and the people who call them home.