Image: National Museum of Fine Arts, Argentina, Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires’ National Museum of Fine Arts has announced a month of free August programming that ranges from guided tours and accessible visits to workshops, family activities, cinema screenings and temporary exhibitions. The museum’s schedule places special emphasis on its 130th anniversary, using that milestone as a frame for several of the month’s tours and events, while also introducing a new prize-related installation later in the month.
At the center of the museum’s temporary exhibition programme is Adriana Bustos’ 'Código natal: los orígenes cósmicos del Museo', shown on the first floor and described by the museum as featuring a specially commissioned work made for the Bellas Artes’ 130th anniversary. The same floor is also hosting 'Itinerarios entre la Argentina y España (1880-1930)' until 2 August, a presentation of paintings and documents by artists from both countries. Another temporary show, 'Vechy Logioio. Travesía', runs until 9 August on the second floor.
The museum also announced the inauguration of a new edition of the Premio Arthaus Artes Visuales on 25 August at 6 p.m. This year’s award went to Salta-born artist Javier Soria Vázquez for his installation project 'Columen', which will be exhibited in the second-floor rooms through 20 September. The museum says the opening forms part of its August calendar of public activities, alongside the continuing exhibition of Bustos’ project.
Guided tours across the permanent collection run throughout the month. 'Bellas Artes 130', offered on Tuesdays and Saturdays at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., introduces visitors to emblematic works in the collection starting from Bustos’ exhibition. Other regular tours include 'La luz y el color en el impresionismo francés' on Fridays and Sundays at 6 p.m., and 'Obras en diálogo' on Sundays at 4 p.m., which pairs two works from the collection for comparison and discussion. The schedule also includes themed walks on Baroque and Rococo art, Auguste Rodin, 20th-century art, Andean art and 19th-century Argentine art.
Accessibility-focused activities include 'El retrato en tus manos', a guided visit for blind and low-vision visitors on 8 August at 11 a.m., which uses touch and narration to approach sculptural works. The museum will also offer tours in Argentine Sign Language (LSA) for the deaf community on Wednesdays and on 9 and 23 August at 3 p.m., centered on the Adriana Bustos exhibition. These sessions are presented as part of the same monthly programme rather than as separate ticketed events.
For families, the museum has scheduled participatory activities on weekends at 5 p.m., including '¿Dónde viven las historias?', 'Una aventura en colores: azules profundos' and '¡Héroes y dioses!', each designed for different age groups and built around storytelling, colour and mythology. Workshops for teens and adults also continue on Thursdays, including 'Bocetos guiados: Arte del Siglo XVIII' and 'Arte y literatura: Entre letras y siluetas', the latter linking Rodin to readings from Dante Alighieri and Charles Baudelaire.
The museum’s film programme is also part of the August offer. 'Aventuras en diseño', a Bellas Artes Cine cycle for the whole family, runs until 15 August with screenings of titles including 'Las aventuras de Superman', 'Flash Gordon', 'Hoppity goes to town' and 'Una invención diabólica' at the Auditorio de Amigos del Bellas Artes, with free admission by prior reservation. A second cycle, 'Poe, Corman y Price: American Gothic', begins on 21 August with films by Roger Corman and Vincent Price based on Edgar Allan Poe.
