Emblematic museum: The Lima Art Museum (MALI)

Posted On: 20 June 2022 #TierrasVivas 408

Located in the historic Palace of the Exhibition, on March 10, 1961, the permanent exhibition halls were officially inaugurated. The museum houses collections that explain the history of Peruvian art: pre-Columbian, colonial, 19th and 20th century and contemporary art. It also houses collections of photography, colonial and republican silverware.

In its permanent exhibition it shows through its numerous rooms the entire history and evolution of Peruvian art from its origins in pre-Hispanic times, passing through the splendor of colonial art where the Cusco style stands out and reaching the art of the beginning of the republic and the period contemporary. In its varied collection we can find ceramics, painting, sculpture, furniture, goldsmithing, drawing, photography and many other disciplines of art. It goes without saying that this is where many of the great masterpieces of Peruvian art are found, such as the great canvas of "The Funerals of Atahualpa" by master Luis Montero.

Data of interest

Located in the Parque de la Exposicion, each room and passageway will take you through our artistic history thanks to its pre-Columbian collections and its large sample of colonial and republican paintings.

It keeps in its permanent exhibition the painting “Los Funerales de Atahualpa”, an academic painting by the Peruvian artist Luis Montero. This large oil on canvas (420 x 600 cm.), weighing approximately 200 kg., was made in Florence between 1865 and 1867.

Learn more about the place

Various exhibitions take turns in its temporary rooms throughout the year, each one equal to or more spectacular than the previous one, giving plenty of reasons to visit Mali again and again. All this within the beautiful Palace of the Exhibition, a building that was built for the 1872 Lima World Fair and that has managed to survive the most difficult times of our modern history and the advance of modernity.

Note: The schedules, entrance fees and other information presented below may change at any time and without prior notice, since it depends on the museum's administration. If you find any difference, we would appreciate if you let us know so we can correct it.

What is the Lima Art Museum?

The MALI Lima houses a collection of 17,000 works of Peruvian art in the rooms of pre-Columbian, colonial, republican, textile, photography, silver, modern and drawing art. Only the area renovated in 2015 has 1,200 works of the global.

The collection of the Lima art museum began with the acquisition of the most complete set of works by the Peruvian painter Carlos Baca-Flor in Paris, from there it was expanded over the years.

The architecture of its facilities belongs to a period of history in Lima that is worth keeping, both outside and inside.

The Lima Art Museum boutique has a variety of items for lovers of artistic design. You can also enjoy MALI coffee during your visit.

What can you see here?

The historic Palace Museum of Art of Lima (MALI), is one of the main museums in Peru, located on Paseo Colón, in front of the Museum of Italian Art, in the vicinity of Lima. Its total exhibition area is 4,500 m², including the rooms corresponding to the permanent collection and temporary exhibitions. It is a precursor construction in Latin America, since it is one of the earliest and most important works made with the iron construction technique. Projected in the neo-Renaissance style, it was designed by the Italian architect Antonio Leonardi. Surrounded by statues, gardens and the zoo, the Museum specializes in exhibiting works of art, prioritizing the exhibition of Peruvian art that covers the four stages: pre-Hispanic, viceregal, republican and current. The collection is organized according to the periods of Peruvian history; Its collection includes ceramics and textiles from the various pre-Hispanic cultures that existed in the Andes, colonial furniture, pictorial works by Pancho Fierro, Francisco Laso, Ignacio Merino, Carlos Baca Flor and other painters from the Republican period, as well as its permanent exhibition that includes 3,000 years of art in Peru.

The Museum offers a great offer to its visitors since it has courses in plastic arts, corporal expression, guitar, aerobics and dance. It also offers film library and event services. It is one of the main museums in the country, with a recognized track record in the conservation, research and dissemination of Peruvian art.

Schedule

Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Tuesday entrance only to temporary exhibitions from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Closed on Mondays, Labor Day (May 1), Christmas (December 24 and 25), and New Years (January 1).

Ticket cost

General admission S/ 15.00 (Thursday, Friday and Saturday)
Students over 8 years old S/ 7.50
You can buy your tickets on the museum website or directly at the ticket office

Free Entry

Tuesday free admission to temporary exhibitions only
Under 8 years and over 65
Members of the Friends of MALI Program (PAM) and Official Tourist Guides with card

Guided visits

The museum offers bilingual guided tours at the following times:

Tuesday to Saturday at 11:00, 12:00, 14:00, 15:00 and 16:00, with a minimum of five people. The additional cost for this is 5 soles.

Recommendations for the visit

There is Wi-Fi in the museum but you must request the network and the password at the reception.
Photographs and videos are allowed but without flash, except for some instruction from the museum staff.
No food or drink may be brought in to eat in the exhibit halls.
Use the "cloakroom" to store coats or large objects that you cannot bring into the rooms.
Selfie sticks and tripods cannot be used.

Emblematic Building

Elías Mujica, executive director of World Monuments Fund Peru, highlighted the complexity of carrying out the restoration project of one of the most emblematic buildings in Lima, with a long history in terms of the uses and functions it had from its construction in 1869 until our days.

In addition, he stressed, "for WMF Peru it was a great responsibility, considering that, for the first time, the European Union in Peru committed international cooperation funding to a project to restore cultural heritage in our country."

The project seeks to expand the social dimension of MALI, which will allow it to provide cultural experiences in better safety conditions to its audiences, guaranteeing greater proximity of its collections to citizens, as well as to all passers-by who visit the Exhibition Park.

At the same time, it seeks to preserve the architectural, historical and cultural values of one of the most emblematic heritage buildings in the Historic Center of Lima.

Alberto Rebaza, president of the MALI Board of Directors, thanked the European Union in Peru and the World Monuments Fund Peru, because they have made it possible to recover the architectural and ornamental elements of the façade of the old Palace of the Exhibition, a "monumental landmark of the city at the beginning of the the celebrations for the hundred and fifty years of its inauguration”.

"On such a symbolic date, that its restoration serves to renew everyone's commitments to the city and the country," he remarked.

Restoration

The work has included the restoration of segments of the walls, moldings and ornaments, the painting of the exterior walls, the plaster coating, the restoration of the wood on the balustrade, pediment and works on the upper and intermediate cornice and the installation of pipes for the monumental lighting system.

Also the improvement of the pluvial drainage channeling of the roof tensioned cover and even the implementation of a ventilation ditch around the building to protect it from humidity, and other technical actions to preserve the façade of this monumental building.

Gaspar Frontini explained that, in addition to this restoration, the cultural cooperation project for the Bicentennial includes a cultural program presented by the European cultural centers through the EUNIC group, as well as the creation of two cultural routes and the Casa Criolla in the Rimac.

The European Union thus collaborates with the Metropolitan Municipality of Lima in the revitalization of the Historic Center of Lima, improving the social, cultural, economic and environmental conditions of its residents and visitors.

Best Tours in Peru

Many are the routes that take you to Machu Picchu, but none is like the Inca Trail Tours, the most famous pedestrian path in the Americas. After flying from the capital of Perú, Lima, you will arrive in Cusco to walk for four days along a path through forests and dense fog, millenary stone steps and discovering the ruins of ancient fortifications and Inca cities, and all the time enjoying majestic views.

If you want to visit Machu Picchu, we recommend you to book your Machu Picchu Ticket in advance, so you will enjoy your Vacation in Machu Picchu without any problem.