German gallery owner Helga de Alvear’s decision to move her collection – one of the most outstanding in Europe – to Cáceres to make it accessible to the general public has marked a turning point not only for the city but for Spain’s entire cultural industry. Since it opened in 2021, the Helga de Alvear Museum of Contemporary Art has become an example of the democratisation of culture and a benchmark museum owing to its good practices and excellent service for all audiences.

CHALLENGE

Cáceres is a city with a rich historical and architectural legacy. Here in this city, named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986, the gallery owner Helga de Alvear turned a centrally located building into a space to welcome the general public and to foster their enjoyment of and learning from contemporary art.

GOALS

• To make art and culture more accessible to the people of Extremadura and to all its visitors.
• To apply a model of excellence in the standard of cultural mediation and visitor services.
• To contribute to the development and growth of local professionals in the realm of culture.

TASK

MagmaCultura is responsible for the museum’s cultural mediation and visitor services. Based on the concept of social responsibility, we developed a means of communication with visitors that reinforces their connection to the Helga de Alvear Museum and its exhibited works, developing their contemporary art sensibilities and facilitating the interpretation of the artworks on display.

RESULTS

In 2021, the Helga de Alvear Museum was one of the finalists for the European Museum of the Year Award, Europe’s oldest and most prestigious museum award, also known as the EMYA Awards. By its first anniversary it had exceeded 100,000 visitors and has continued to attract new visitors ever since. Contemporary art has been made more accessible to all sorts of audiences, including schoolchildren, the local public, professionals in the sector and tourists.

KEY PROJECT FEATURES

• Creativity and professionalism in education and mediation services.
• Development of museum and cultural institution audiences.
• Proactiveness and personalisation in guided tours and visitor services.