Madrid, December 16th, 2025 – The Madrid History Museum today inaugurated ‘Asphalt Nature. Hyperrealistic Madrid,’ an exhibition by artist José Miguel Palacio. Marta Rivera de la Cruz, Delegate for Culture, Tourism and Sport, officially opened the display, which features 70 paintings and sculptures offering a fresh perspective on the city’s urban essence.
A Journey Through Recognizable Yet Surprising Madrid
The exhibition, which is free to the public until May 24th, 2026, guides visitors through a Madrid that is both familiar and unexpectedly new. It showcases urban scenes that highlight both the city’s architectural grandeur and its most mundane daily moments.
Among the exhibition’s most notable pieces is L’Infante Liberty, a sculpture where Palacio explores the concept of freedom by merging two iconic symbols of universal art: Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi’s Liberty Enlightening the World and Diego Velázquez’s Las Meninas. Another significant section is the Papiroflexia series, comprising 12 bronze sculptures created between 1995 and 1997, each limited to an edition of 200 copies.
Four Thematic Rooms for an Immersive Madrid Experience
The exhibition is structured into four thematic rooms:
- Urban Architecture: Exploring Madrid’s monumental structures.
- Arrivals and Departures: Focusing on the movement and flow of the city.
- Life in the City: Depicting everyday urban existence.
- Shopping and Leisure: Showcasing Madrid’s recreational spaces.
Each room offers a distinct approach to the Madrid experience, from its grand urban settings to the subtle details often overlooked in daily life. The exhibition encourages viewers to look with fresh eyes at what is usually taken for granted, to rediscover the city as a living organism where every corner can become the stage for something unexpectedly natural. These sometimes almost invisible images serve as a reminder that, even amidst the asphalt, beauty finds a way to manifest itself.
Hyperrealism in a Vibrant City
Discussing hyperrealism in Madrid takes on a special significance. As a vibrant city full of rhythm, Madrid offers diverse settings such as Gran Vía, its parks, markets, and the everyday scenes that form its urban pulse. Upon entering the exhibition, the city’s hustle and bustle seem to transform into silence. The technical precision of the artworks places the visitor in a reality that, at times, surpasses fiction.
‘Asphalt Nature. Hyperrealistic Madrid’ is open from Tuesday to Sunday, from 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM, in the Temporary Exhibition Hall of the Madrid History Museum.
