The Art of Getting High

Overexcited and in love with this city I have just spent 48 hours wide awake pacing my bedroom floor in a small hotel on Calle Del Prado, Madrid. I can sleep for England (not with England) well, maybe one or two of them. It turns out I was high. High on Spanish 500mg migraine tablets. I was even thinking of walking to the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza at 2.30am, now that's dedication for you.

I am not very good at drugs. I remember on my first trip to Amsterdam with the girls, aged 18, rolling spliffs in a cafe. No tobacco, the size of Tampax. Say no more. That turned out to be a very interesting if not traumatic few days. 

There was also the evening when I was at a party with two very famous boxers and ended up smoking crack cocaine by accident. Three days later I was still pacing the floor of my studio flat in Islington scared out of my tiny mind. 

My drugs of choice are art, walking, and poodles. Load that with one of your favourite cities in the world and hola (not voila). Madrid, words cannot explain my love for you. Faded dusty pink medieval buildings with steel doorways that reveal exposed concrete modern bakeries and I'm high, that's before I even get onto the art. 

The Golden Triangle in Madrid (that is not some form of blowback btw) the Golden Triangle is three huge museums in the centre of Madrid. This area is considered to have a higher concentration of art. In other words, it's the strong stuff. The three museums are Museo Nacional del Prado, Reina Sofia and Thyssen Bornemisza. The Thyseen has 16,000 pieces, Prado 8600 paintings and 700 sculptures, Reina Sophia 21,000. That is 46,300 pieces of art in 0.62 miles.

This means you need to keep popping to Madrid. Shame :) It's a two-trip city at least. I have chosen one piece from each gallery, the piece from each gallery that has stuck in my mind after a few days back at the desk. If I could, I would go back to Madrid 46,300 times or just live there. It's easier. 

Museo Nacional del Prado
Joaquin Sorolla – Boys on the Beach, 1910
Sorolla is one of Spain's most celebrated artists inspired by impressionism. He skillfully captures the sunlight bouncing off the boy's bodies. The reason I chose this piece is not just because of its beauty but because it reminds me of my boys playing in the sea in the Caribbean. It sparked an incredibly happy memory. 

Museo Thyssen-Bornemisaza
Mark Rothko – Untitled Green on Maroon, 1961 

Rothko unlocks the emotional power of colour. This is the piece that helped  me come down from my manic migraine high. I flew around the Thyssen at high speed until this dreamy piece slowed me right down. I sat with it for a while and took some much-needed deep breaths. At that moment I arrived at inner peace. The number of breathwork classes and yoga studios I have frequented over the years to reach this state, if only I had known it can be found in a gallery. 

Reina Sophia 
Alexander Calder – Carmen, 1976
Installed in the courtyard this piece stole my heart from the moment I entered the building. The eight blades are moved by air currents giving the piece a playful and optimistic feel. I love the fact that you can view it from so many different angles and check on it as you wander through the gallery. I have seen it in summer and winter but I would love to see it in the snow. That is 46,301 trips to Madrid then!

There is one more perfectly legal drug in Madrid and that is churros. I am not going to attempt to discuss all the other divine cuisine Madrid has to offer. I will leave that to Grace Dent or someone. Chocolat Madrid is crack cocaine for everyone and their mother. If you are looking for a dealer closer to home Love Churros on Bethnal Green road is doused in ice-cream. Try it, go on, try it. 

Madrid you got me high and my heart. 

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Much love, Jules x