El gran árbol y el ojo (Tall Tree & The Eye) - Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, Guide du visiteur et quoi faire à proximité

Tall Tree & The Eye (El gran árbol y el ojo) is a sculpture by Anish Kapoor on the grounds of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. It is made of 73 mirror-like spheres that reflect the museum, the Nervión river and the city around it. It is one of the outdoor artworks that makes a walk around Gehry's building worthwhile even before you think about going inside.

The story behind it

Anish Kapoor, born in 1954, built this work from 73 reflective spheres anchored around three axes. The polished surfaces reflect and refract one another, so the shapes seem to form and dissolve as you move. Nothing in it stays still: the picture changes with your position, the weather and the light.

It stands beside the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, designed by Frank O. Gehry and opened in 1997. The building became a landmark of contemporary architecture and a major factor in the development of the city. The sculpture also suits a Basque idea: the word harreman (relationship) comes from hartu (receive) and eman (give), a reminder that a relationship needs give and take. A work made of spheres that constantly reflect each other fits that idea well.

What to look for

• Find the Guggenheim itself in the spheres, its curving forms bent and multiplied across dozens of small mirrors.
• Look for the red arches of the La Salve Bridge, which appear stretched and curved in the polished surfaces.
• Spot the Nervión river in the reflections and notice how the water and sky merge with the metal.
• Watch yourself and your companions: the spheres show you distorted, and each sphere shows a slightly different version of the scene.

Tips for your visit

• The sculpture is outdoors, so you can see it without going into the museum. Check current opening hours and entry rules if you also want to visit the galleries.
• Allow 15 to 20 minutes to walk around it and look from several angles, longer if you like photography.
• Clear weather gives the brightest reflections, and moving slowly around the work changes the view a lot.
• Combine it with a stroll along the river and across to the La Salve Bridge, and with the other outdoor sculptures around the museum, such as Puppy and Maman.

See it on a quest

Romantic Bilbao: Year of Love is a good way to see this sculpture, because you reach it on foot as one stop of a longer route through the area. The app tells you about each place as you arrive and sets a puzzle based on what is in front of you, so you look at the spheres and the riverside more closely. The quest is paid, and one ticket covers the whole group, which makes it easy to share with a partner or friends.