Museo Oteiza

About the museum

The Museo Oteiza preserves the legacy of the sculptor and all-round artist Jorge Oteiza (Orio, 1908 – San Sebastián, 2003), which was donated to Navarre in 1992. The Fundación Museo Jorge Oteiza, a private cultural institution of public service funded by the Government of Navarre, is responsible for preserving and promoting this heritage; its statutes were signed by the artist himself in 1996, and its seat is in Alzuza, in the Valle de Egüés.

The building is the work of the architect Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oiza, who designed a large reddish concrete cube, crowned by three large prismatic skylights, on the southern slope of Alzuza. A glazed gallery links it to Oteiza's former house, now a house-studio, which keeps its façade and internal structure. Oteiza and his wife, Itziar Carreño, moved into this abandoned house in 1975 and turned it into a home, workplace and refuge.

The collection brings together around 1,650 sculptures, some 2,000 pieces from his experimental laboratory and a wide range of drawings and collages, and revolves around the emptying of geometric forms and reflection on space. Alongside the exhibitions, the museum has a study centre with a library, archive and press archive, a bookshop and an educational programme.

Highlights

• Permanent collection “Oteiza 1908-2003” with around 150 sculptures
• Chalk Laboratory: 300 pieces from his experimental laboratory
• More than 35 plasters, many linked to the Arantzazu basilica project
• The artist's house-studio, joined to the museum by a glazed gallery
• Sáenz de Oiza building: reddish concrete cube with three skylights

Permanent exhibitions

• Colección permanente: Oteiza 1908-2003 – Integrated view of Oteiza's creative career with around 150 sculptures, 300 pieces from the Chalk Laboratory, more than 35 plasters and a selection of manuscripts and drawings from his archive.
• Casa-taller de Jorge Oteiza – The artist's former home in Alzuza, arranged with informative and documentary material on his creative settings and disciplines.

Founded

2003

Operated by

Fundación Museo Jorge Oteiza

Admission & discounts

Free admission: Every Friday, except public holidays

DANOK OTEIZA members enter free. Groups must give advance notice on +34 948 332 074 or at recepcion@museooteiza.org. School centres in Navarre take part free in the school campaign “El museo como escuela” (€5 per pupil for centres in other autonomous communities).

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum is in Alzuza, about 9 kilometres from Pamplona.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

The bookshop, between reception and the house-studio, specialises in Basque and Navarrese art and art theory, and opens during the same hours as the museum.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit