Madrid president Isabel Díaz Ayuso has criticized the Basque Government's request to temporarily move Picasso's Guernica to Bilbao's Guggenheim, calling it a "catetada". PNV's Aitor Esteban hit back, accusing her of provincialism for prioritizing terrace drinks during the pandemic. The Reina Sofía Museum strongly advises against the move.
The Basque Government requested at the end of March that Pedro Sánchez's Government temporarily move Guernica to Bilbao's Guggenheim Museum for an exhibition from October 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027. The request marks the 90th anniversary of the first Basque Government and the 1937 Gernika bombing during the Civil War.
Madrid president Isabel Díaz Ayuso stated on Monday in Parla that moving the work seems like a "catetada" and an "absurd controversy" feeding nationalism. She argued it risks the painting's integrity and makes no sense to return works to origins as convenient, such as taking all of Picasso's work to Málaga. "Culture is universal," she said, promoting events like Spain's Formula 1 Grand Prix and the Pope's visit for everyone's benefit.
PNV's EBB president Aitor Esteban replied on X that a "catetada" is having a "main national claim to have a beer on a terrace," referring to Ayuso's pandemic policy. The Reina Sofía Museum issued a report strongly advising against the loan, noting it has never agreed to similar requests, not even from New York's MoMA.
