Museo de la Solidaridad Salvador Allende

The Museo de la Solidaridad Salvador Allende is one of the most politically and artistically fascinating museums in Latin America. Its collection was built between 1971 and 1973 through donations by international artists who admired Allende's Popular Unity government — over 700 works from more than 50 countries arrived before the coup ended the experiment. After September 1973, the collection was hidden by museum staff and returned only after the return of democracy.

The resulting collection is extraordinary: major works by Miró, Calder, Le Parc, and many other significant figures of 20th-century art, all connected by the story of their political purpose. The building itself is not much, but the collection and the story behind it make this a genuinely moving visit. Open Tuesday to Sunday; small admission fee.

things to do museum
A story
The museum's founding collection was assembled during Salvador Allende's government (1970–1973), when artists from around the world — including Joan Miró, Alexander Calder, Julio Le Parc, and Roberto Matta — donated works in solidarity with Chile's socialist project. After the coup, the collection was hidden and protected by supporters of the Allende government until democracy was restored in 1990 and the museum could reopen. It is the only museum in the world founded by the act of international political solidarity.

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