For most visitors, the real star is the architecture. Designed by Frank Gehry, the museum is a succession of shapes, fluid caps, headlands, ships, towers, and winged fins,all covered in glittering titanium plates. It is a magnificent vision. Take all the time you need to observe the shapes and colors that change as the light changes. The Guggenheim Bilbao dominates the area of the city facing the river, and its appearance and the surrounding atmosphere change depending on the light. The site where the museum stands was a disused industrial area; the city’s past was dominated by industry and shipping ships and fisheries is evoked by its shape, which some consider similar to a ship or a fish shimmering. After the collapse of the shipping business and heavy industry, the administration committed itself to a regeneration project of the city. One of the main requirements was the construction of a world-class exhibition space, and from that idea, the Guggenheim Bilbao was born. Since its opening in 1997, the museum has contributed to transforming Bilbao from a declining industrial city to a center of culture and interacting with the city’s historical and geographical context. The construction also reflects the interests of Gehry, who, in previous works, had already made use of industrial materials. The shiny titanium plates that cover most of the building like gigantic scales are reportedly inspired by the architect’s passion for fish

Outside on the side of the museum facing the city, it rises 12 m Puppy, a terrier made with thousands of flowers: Jeff Koons’ work was only supposed to be a temporary installation but Bilbao has become fond of “El Poop”. The bilbainos will tell you that the dog arrived first and then they had to build a kennel for him.