El Vecino Curioso

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El Vecino Curioso (The Curious Neighbor) by Salvador Fernández Oliva, 1999
Calle de la Almudena
Madrid, September 2025

“Madrid has almost 2,000 sculptures, some of which are predictably dedicated to former monarchs, military heroes, and other prominent public figures. Yet some of the more interesting statues are compelling precisely because of how ordinary they are. Look carefully and you'll find life-size depictions or anonymous Madrileños going about their business. ‘El Vecino Curioso’, or ‘The Curious Neighbor’, is a bronze of a middle-aged gentleman created by sculptor Salvador Fernández Oliva in 1999. He appears to be leaning on a railing and looking down at the archeological remains of Santa María de la Almudena, the first church to be built in Madrid. The statue is anchored directly to the sidewalk, without a base. Unfortunately, only a few remnants of the original church survived after it fell victim to the construction work on Calle de Bailén in 1868. What's left is visible through a protective glass case, into which this curious neighbor peers. The statue's underside is polished from the many times it has been touched. Some say this is out of habit, others think it brings good luck. The statue has spent several decades in the same place, practicing the national sport of pensioners: ‘watching the works’.” (The Curious Neighbor, Atlas Obscura)

Monument to Eloy Gonzalo

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Monument to Eloy Gonzalo by Aniceto Marinas, 1902
Plaza de Cascorro
Madrid, September 2025

“The Monument to Eloy Gonzalo is an instance of public art in Madrid, Spain. It is a monument dedicated to Eloy Gonzalo, the so-called Hero of Cascorro. Erected on the plaza de Cascorro, it consists of a bronze statue of the aforementioned Cuban War hero authored by Aniceto Marinas, put on a stone plinth. It is a monument dedicated to Eloy Gonzalo [es] a Spanish soldier in the Cuban War independence who, in September 1896 — during a siege by a party of about 2,500 Cuban mambises equipped with 70 mm battalion guns on a small regiment of Spanish soldiers garrisoned in the small village of Cascorro — reportedly volunteered to his superiors in a nearly suicidal mission to infiltrate the enemy lines and fire the hut used as a warehouse for the weaponry of the enemy. Reportedly equipped with a 10-liter gasoline can, a Mauser rifle, a torch and a rope (to tie himself allowing for the retrieval of his corpse in case he fell in action, as he was certain of) he succeeded against all odds, helping to demoralize the enemy until the lift of the siege by General Adolfo Jiménez Castellanos, only to die of dysentery in Matanzas in June 1897.” (Monument to Eloy Gonzalo, Wikipedia)

Tío Pepe

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Close-up of the “Tío Pepe” sign
Puerta del Sol
Madrid, September 2025

“Tío Pepe (Uncle Pepe, named after one of the founders' uncles) is a brand of Sherry. It is best known for its fino style of dry sherry made from the palomino grape. The Tío Pepe brand is owned by the González Byass Sherry house. Tío Pepe has based its success on promoting itself as a very dry white wine to be served with food, in doing so aiming to differentiate itself from poor quality sherries and their downmarket reputation. The Tío Pepe soleras were established in 1844 and have run uninterrupted since that time.” (Tío Pepe, Wikipedia)

La Casa Encendida

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La Casa Encendida
Ronda de Valencia
Madrid, September 2025

“La Casa Encendida is a social and cultural centre in central Madrid (on the Ronda de Valencia where it is met by Calle Valencia). It began operations in December 2002. It belongs to the Fundación Montemadrid (the formal title of which is Fundación Obra Social y Monte de Piedad de Madrid), a social responsibility entity set up by the Spanish bank Caja Madrid. Among its activities are avant-garde art exhibitions, and running courses and workshops on social matters, culture and the environment. The cultural programme includes performance art, film, exhibitions and other forms of contemporary creativity. It developed as a place which particularly supports young artists. The name La Casa Encendida (The Burning House in English) is taken from the eponymous book of the poet Luis Rosales Camacho, whose heirs gave their permission for its use” (La Casa Encendida, Wikipedia)

Museo Geominero

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Museo Geominero
Calle de Ríos Rosas, Chamberí
Madrid, September 2025

“The Museo Geominero (Geomineral Museum) is a geology museum displaying minerals and fossils from Spain and its former colonies. It is located inside the Instituto Geológico y Minero de España building in Madrid, Spain. The museum has its roots in the collection of the 'Comisión para formar la Carta geológica de Madrid y la general del Reino' (Commission to form the geographical letter of Madrid and the kingdom), which was created by Isabella II in 1849. The collection has been housed in its current location since 1927, and was conceived of by Spanish mining engineer D. Primitivo Hernández Sampelayo. It has been known as the Museo geominero since 1989. The museum is located in the headquarters of the Geological and Mining Institute of Spain. The building was designed by Spanish architect Francisco Javier de Luque, and built between 1921 and 1925. The contents of the museum are displayed in 250 showcases on the ground floor of the building and three perimeter balconies.” (Museo Geominero, Wikipedia)

Canal de Isabel II

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Elevated reservoir of the Canal de Isabel II
Calle Santa Engracia, Chamberí
Madrid, September 2025

“Canal de Isabel II (CYII) is the company that manages the bulk of water supplies for the Community of Madrid. It is primarily owned by the regional administration through the so-called Ente Público Canal de Isabel II, with a minor stake owned by local governments. The Y in the abbreviated form of the company's name is from the old spelling Ysabel for Queen Isabel II, during whose reign a modern water supply was provided for Madrid. A canal was constructed to provide water from the catchment of the river Lozoya. The water entered the city through its northern suburbs using gravity.” (Canal de Isabel II, Wikipedia)

Puerta de Alcalá

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Puerta de Alcalá
Plaza de la Independencia
Madrid, September 2025

“The Puerta de Alcalá is a Neo-classical gate in the Plaza de la Independencia in Madrid, Spain. It was a gate of the former Walls of Philip IV. It stands near the city center and several meters away from the main entrance to the Parque del Buen Retiro. The square is bisected by Alcalá Street, although the street does not cross through the monument, and it is the origin of the Alfonso XII, Serrano and Olózaga streets. Its name originates from the old path from Madrid to the nearby town of Alcalá de Henares. Madrid in the late 18th century still looked like a somewhat drab borough, surrounded by medieval walls. Around the year 1774, King Charles III commissioned Francesco Sabatini to construct a monumental gate in the city wall through which an expanded road to the city of Alcalá was to pass, replacing an older, smaller, gate that stood nearby. It was inaugurated in 1778. The ornamental details were sculpted by Francisco Gutiérrez and Roberto Michel, and made of white stone from Colmenar. The architectural elements are chiefly made of granite from Segovia.” (Puerta de Alcalá, Wikipedia)

Torres de Colón

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Torres de Colón (Columbus Towers) by Antonio Lamela, 1976
Calle de Génova, Chamberí
Madrid, September 2025

“Columbus Towers or Torres de Colón is a highrise office building composed of twin towers located at the Plaza de Colón in Madrid, Spain. The building constructed in 1976 was designed by the architect Antonio Lamela. The building with its 116-meter height and 23 floors is the twelfth-tallest in the Spanish capital (counting the CTBA towers). It was the headquarters of the Rumasa company, during which time its name was changed to Torres de Jerez (Towers of Jerez), in honour of the home town of the company. It is currently valued at $116 million. It is found in and dominates the Plaza de Colón, one of the major commercial centres in Madrid. The twin buildings are known locally as ‘El Enchufe’ or ‘The Plug’ for the plug-like structure that binds them. The towers have a suspended structure; the building consists of two pillars together on top of a platform from which hang two large towers with perimeter beams six feet singing with pendulums each floor with cable-stayed steel cables. Construction commenced with the concrete footings, the two central pillars and the upper platform. Then the towers were built from top to bottom, from the upper platform plant to plant closer to the base of the building. At the base, three floors (six floors including basements) were built from the bottom up. The glass facades are covered with maroon and green and there is a structure (the ‘plug’ added later) at the top. The building houses offices of various companies and shops on the lower floors.” (Torres de Colón, Wikipedia)

Museo Sorolla

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Museo Sorolla
Paseo del General Martínez Campos, Chamberí
Madrid, September 2025

“The Sorolla Museum (Spanish: Museo Sorolla) is a single-artist museum in Madrid, Spain, devoted to the work and life of Joaquín Sorolla and the members of his family, such as his daughter Elena. The museum is located in the house that was the artist's home and workshop, which was converted into a museum after the death of his widow. It is one of the National Museums of Spain and it is attached to the Ministry of Culture. The building was designed by Enrique María Repullés. The principal rooms continue to be furnished as they were during the artist's life, including Sorolla's large, well-lit studio, where the walls are filled with his canvasses. Other rooms are used as galleries to display Sorolla's paintings, while the upstairs rooms are a gallery for temporary exhibitions. In 2014, these rooms presented an exhibition of David Palacin photographs of the ballet Sorolla produced by the Spanish National Dance Company.” (Sorolla Museum, Wikipedia)

Monumento a Calvo Sotelo

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Monumento a Calvo Sotelo by Carlos Ferreira de la Torre, 1960
Paseo de la Castellana
Madrid, September 2025

“The Monument to Calvo Sotelo (Spanish: Monumento a Calvo Sotelo) is an instance of public art located in Madrid, Spain. Erected on the south of the Plaza de Castilla, it is dedicated to José Calvo Sotelo, who was assassinated shortly before the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War. The monument was an initiative of the ‘National Junta’ for the homage to the Glorious Proto-Martyr of the Crusade Don José Calvo Sotelo, an entity reanimated in 1954 by the Francoist dictatorship in order to resume earlier Burgos government's projects dating back to 1938 intending to commemorate the aforementioned politician and delayed by the then ongoing state of war. The location of the monument was decided in 1958. Commissioned to Manuel Manzano-Monís (architect) and Carlos Ferreira de la Torre (sculptor), the monument fuses the aesthetics of Italian fascism with the Spanish vanguard of the time. Made of reinforced concrete, the single written inscription on the material reads ‘España a Calvo Sotelo’ (Spain to Calvo Sotelo). It was unveiled on 13 July 1960. It was slightly relocated in 1992 during the works of reform of the Plaza de Castilla and put on a raised platform in the south end of the plaza. Its frontal perspective generates an axis of symmetry with the Puerta de Europa twin towers.” (Monument to Calvo Sotelo, Wikipedia)

Torre Cepsa

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Torre Cepsa by Norman Foster, 2008
Paseo de la Castellana
Madrid, September 2025

“The Torre Moeve (Moeve Tower) is a skyscraper located in the Cuatro Torres Business Area in Madrid, Spain. With a height of 248.3 m (815 ft) and 45 floors, it is the second tallest of the four buildings in the Cuatro Torres Business Area complex, surpassed by Torre de Cristal by less than a metre. It is the second tallest building in Spain and the 5th tallest building in the European Union. It was successively named the Torre Repsol, the Torre Caja Madrid, the Torre Bankia, the Torre Cepsa between 2014 and 2024, and currently the Torre Moeve, depending on which major Spanish company had the lease. Designed by Lord Foster — and this also colloquially referred to as the Torre Foster, — it was built by a joint venture of Dragados and Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas. The tower was initially known as Torre Repsol and would have served as headquarters for Repsol YPF oil and gas company. During the construction of the tower, Repsol decided to change the location of its future headquarters and the financial institution Caja Madrid purchased the building for €815 million in August 2007. In 2016 it was bought by Amancio Ortega, Europe's richest man and founder of global fashion group and Zara owner Inditex (ITX.MC), for €490 million euros through his property investment arm, Pontegadea Inmobiliaria, one of the biggest property companies in Spain. He purchased the tower from Abu Dhabi tycoon Khadem al-Qubaisi, whose fund had exercised a last-minute purchase option from Spanish lender Bankia (BKIA.MC), its previous owner. The current name of the tower refers to the energy company Moeve, previously known as Cepsa, headquartered in the building. It is likely to change its name once again if Moeve goes ahead with the plan to move its HQ to another part of Madrid.” (Torre Cepsa, Wikipedia)

Torre de Cristal

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Torre de Cristal (Glass Tower) by Cesar Pelli, 2008
Paseo de la Castellana
Madrid, September 2025

“The Torre de Cristal (Glass Tower) is a skyscraper in the Cuatro Torres Business Area (CTBA) in Madrid, Spain, completed in 2008. With a final height of 249 m (817 ft), it surpassed Torre Emperador as the tallest building in Spain, and is the fifth-tallest in the European Union. It was designed by Cesar Pelli and built by Dragados.” (Torre de Cristal, Wikipedia)

Caleido

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Caleido by Fenwick Iribarren Architects, 2021
Paseo de la Castellana
Madrid, September 2025

“Caleido is a 173-metre-tall (568 ft), 36-story skyscraper located in Madrid. It is popularly known as the Quinta Torre (Fifth Tower), as it stands near the other four skyscrapers of the Cuatro Torres Business Area (CTBA) complex along the Paseo de la Castellana. As of 2021, IE University is the main tenant. Construction began in April 2017 and the tower was formally completed on 19 October 2021. The original completion date was September 2020, but it was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The building occupies the former site of the Centro Internacional de Convenciones de la Ciudad de Madrid. It is the fifth tallest building in Madrid and the seventh tallest in Spain. Caleido was designed by the architectural firms Fenwick Iribarren and Serrano-Suñer Arquitectura. The main contractor was OHL Desarrollos.” (Caleido, Wikipedia)

Simeón Sentado

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Simeón Sentado by Francisco Leiro, 2007
Paseo de la Castellana
Madrid, September 2025

“Simeon wanted to be alone to meditate, but he was so rigorous in his methods that he was expelled from the monastery. To escape the world, he went to the desert and there looked for a dry cistern, but curiosity was aroused, and his fame drew hundreds of people to visit him. He also visited the cave where he later took refuge. Fed up with everything, he had a three-meter-high column built, but it wasn't enough. He asked for another seven-meter one, but that wasn't enough either. Finally, he got one seventeen meters high, which he climbed. According to legend, he spent thirty-seven years there, until he died in 459. He was known as Simon the Stylite, and his memory is commemorated on January 5th. Luis Buñuel made a film about him, Simon of the Desert (1965), a cinema classic. Buñuel didn't let him die on the column, but that's another story. This is ‘Simeón sentado’ (Simon Seated), a bronze sculpture on a granite column by Francisco Leiro, installed in 2007 at the Cuatro Torres in Madrid. Leiro, who has other sculptures in which the biblical and the classical interact with modernity, wanted to see here a distracted attitude in Simeon, evoking the Hellenistic Thorn-Bearer, but also Rodin's thinker. I said distracted, but I could say relaxed: is good old Simeon meditating, or has he been distracted by the flight of a butterfly? No matter how high you climb, the world will always call you back. There, next to it, is the Torre Emperador Castellana, formerly Torre Espacio, with its two hundred and thirty meters of height (the fourth tallest building in Spain) and many people perched on it. Are they meditating? The tower is also famous for the fire that broke out there while it was still under construction, in September 2006. Will Simeon think of this when he sees people staring curiously at him from above?” (Simeón sentado, La Acequia)

Puerta de San Vicente

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Puerta de San Vicente
Glorieta de San Vicente
Madrid, September 2025

“The Puerta de San Vicente is a monumental gate located in the Glorieta de San Vicente in Madrid (Spain). Since 1995, it has occupied the space where the original door, designed by architect Francesco Sabatini, was located between 1775 and 1892. Throughout Madrid's history there have been several doors that have received the same name. In 1726, the Marquis of Vadillo, the town's mayor, commissioned Pedro de Ribera to build a monumental gate in the city's fence to replace a previous gate, which was in a dilapidated state and was called ‘del Parque’. The gate, which consisted of three arches, was decorated with a statue of San Vicente, which is why it was given that name, although it would also be known later as the gate of La Florida. It was demolished in 1770, due to the remodelling of the Cuesta de San Vicente (1767–1777), as part of the reorganisation of the western accesses to the Royal Palace and its connection with the Camino de El Pardo. Shortly afterwards, King Carlos III commissioned Francesco Sabatini to build a new gate to replace the previous one as the entrance to the city from the new Paseo de La Florida. The work was completed in 1775 and Sabatini placed an ornamental fountain next to it, popularly known as the Fuente de los Mascarones. The new gate was in its current location, closer to the river than the previous one. It consisted of an arch and two shutters (or portholes) and was built of granite and limestone from Colmenar de Oreja. The arch was decorated with two Doric columns on the outside and two pilasters, also Doric, on the inside. It was crowned by a triangular frontispiece finished with a military trophy. The lateral shutters were also crowned by military trophies. In front of it there were two buildings that also disappeared: the aforementioned Mascarones fountain, between 1775 and 1871, and the Washerwomen's Asylum promoted by María Victoria dal Pozzo, from 1872 to 1938.” (Puerta de San Vicente, Wikipedia)

El Oso y el Madroño

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“El Oso y el Madroño” by Antonio Navarro Santafé, 1967
Puerta del Sol
Madrid, September 2025

“The Statue of the Bear and the Strawberry Tree (Spanish: El Oso y el Madroño) is a sculpture from the second half of the 20th century, situated in the Spanish capital, Madrid. It represents the coat of arms of Madrid and is found on the east side of the Puerta del Sol, between Calle de Alcalá and Carrera de San Jerónimo, in the historical centre of the capital. The statue is a work of the sculptor Antonio Navarro Santafé (1906-1983) and it was inaugurated on 19 January 1967. It was promoted by the section of Culture of the City council of Madrid, which wanted to represent the main heraldic symbols of the city in a monument. The first appearance of a wild bear and a strawberry tree on the coat of arms of the city was in the 13th century. Previously, it only incorporated a bear in passant attitude, until it was replaced in the aforementioned century by the two current figures. With this change, they wanted to symbolise the resolution adopted by the municipality and the Chapter of Priests and Beneficiaries after a long litigation about the control of Madrilenian pastures and trees. Since this agreement, the former became property of the Chapter and the latter of the council. From here they modified the arms, including a strawberry tree and of a bear in a new posture: leaning on the tree with both paws. The sculpture has always been in the Puerta del Sol, but in two locations inside the square. Before 1986, it was situated in the east side of it, in the vicinity of the building between the Calle de Alcalá and the Carrera St. Jerónimo. That year, it was moved to the front of Carmen Street for the square's reform and remodeling, promoted by mayor Enrique Tierno Galván. In September 2009, with the integral renewal of the square promoted by Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, it has gone back to its original location.” (Statue of the Bear and the Strawberry Tree, Wikipedia)

Museo de América

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Museo de América (Museum of America)
Avenida de los Reyes Católicos
Madrid, September 2022

“The Museo de América (Museum of America) is a Spanish national museum of arts, archaeology and ethnography in Madrid. Its collections cover the whole of the Americas and range from the Paleolithic period to the present day. It is owned by the Spanish State and its initial pieces came from the former collection of American archaeological and ethnographic artifacts from the National Archaeological Museum, also exhibiting a number of unrelated donations, deposits and purchases. The institution was founded via a decree from 19 April 1941 and opened in 1944 inside the building hosting the National Archaeological Museum. After all the initial pieces were moved to a newly built premises in the Ciudad Universitaria, the building was thus inaugurated on 12 October 1965. After a series of refurbishment works on the building (previously shared with a number of unrelated institutions), the museum was reopened on 12 October 1994, this time while holding the exclusivity on the use of the building. As part of preparation for the re-opening, a collecting programme was established, with Dominican and Haitian artefacts sourced by the anthropologist Soraya Aracena.” (Museo de América, Wikipedia)

Faro de Moncloa

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Faro de Moncloa (Moncloa's Lighthouse)
Avenida de la Memoria
Madrid, September 2022

“As the expression goes From Madrid to Heaven, because once you've been to Madrid the only place that can top it is paradise itself. Enjoy the city from up high, taking in the wonderful views the Faro de Moncloa affords. Step into the panoramic lift that takes you up 92 metres to the observation deck which stands tall over the heart of Madrid's Ciudad Universitaria. This former transmission tower was built by architect Salvador Pérez Arroyo in 1992, the year in which the city was named European Capital of Culture, and stands at 110 metres tall.” (Faro de Moncloa, Turismo Madrid)

Torre Mahou

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Edificio Alfredo Mahou (Alfredo Mahou Building), 1990
Plaza Manuel Gómez Moreno
Madrid, September 2022

“Edificio Alfredo Mahou (Alfredo Mahou Building), also known as Torre Mahou (Mahou Tower) is a skyscraper in the AZCA Complex, Madrid, Spain. It is the 17th tallest building in Madrid, at 85 metres. It has 29 floors and its facade is crystal blue and purple. Was completed in 1990, the building houses offices and various companies.” (Torre Mahou, Wikipedia)

El beso multicolor

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“El beso multicolor” (The Multicolour Kiss) by Okuda San Miguel, 2021
Calle de Eugenio Caxes
Madrid, September 2022

“One of the most iconic examples of Madrid street art is the mural by Okuda located near the Plaza Río 2 shopping center, created to coincide with the famous Madrid Pride festivities. Okuda San Miguel, who is known for his use of vibrant colors and geometric patterns, has once again brought their signature style to life with this breathtaking piece. The mural features two women from different cultural backgrounds embracing in a passionate kiss, a powerful image that speaks to the diversity and inclusivity of the city. The artist’s intention was to capture the essence of Madrid’s multiculturalism and the importance of free love and acceptance in today’s society. The mural is located on the side of a building, and its sheer size and vivid colors make it impossible to miss. It is one of the most impressive examples of Madrid street art and has become a popular destination for street art enthusiasts and tourists alike, who come to admire the intricacy and beauty of the mural.” (Madrid Street Art, Madrid Traveling)