Madrid's president Isabel Díaz Ayuso has labeled the Basque government's bid to temporarily move Picasso's 'Guernica' to Bilbao's Guggenheim as "cateta". PNV president Aitor Esteban hit back at Madrid's claims. The row follows the Reina Sofía museum's rejection of the loan.
The Basque government requested Culture Minister Ernest Urtasun last week to loan Picasso's 'Guernica' temporarily to Bilbao's Guggenheim from October 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027. The aim marks the 90th anniversary of the first Basque executive and the 1937 Gernika bombing. The Reina Sofía museum has "rotundamente" advised against the move due to the painting's fragile condition.
On Sunday, at Bilbao's Aberri Eguna event, lehendakari Imanol Pradales urged Pedro Sánchez's government to show "political courage". "Did they remove Franco from his tomb in the Valle de los Caídos but can't bring a painting from Madrid to the Basque Country?", he asked, stating it would be "a good way to advance reparation for the Basque people".
Isabel Díaz Ayuso responded on X, noting that sites like Palacio Euskalduna or Zubizuri bridge have non-Basque creators and Bilbao's Fine Arts Museum holds Goya and Sorolla works. "Nationalist pretensions are blind, absurd, cateta. A crude political business", she wrote.
Aitor Esteban hit back: "Historical memory is not compatible with the catetada of your main national claim being to have a beer on a terrace".
