I went to Centro de Arte Reina Sofía National Museum (Madrid, Spain) in the
afternoon of October 25, and I had the worst experience there.



My family and I were watching Picasso's Guernica. The piece is substantially
big, and there is a bar, about a foot-high or so, functioning as a border.
There were a lot of people watching the piece. I was about five inches
behind the bar, and suddenly, a female security officer touched me and
instructed me to move back even more. I was a bit surprised because I was
not that close to the bar. I did move back, and observed the security
officer if she does the same for other visitors who move close to the bar.
There was one group of people who moved close, but she did not do anything.
I gestured her, who was still watching me, to tell them to move back, and
she did. However, there were still many more people who moved very close to
the bar, or even there was a man whose toe was sticking out from the border.
The whole time, she was watching us instead. Again, I gestured (without any
voice) her to tell them to move back as well, but she gestured me to be
quiet instead. The museum was far from silent, with many visitors talking to
each other. I thought her gesture was completely uncalled for. While she was
too busy treating us, the only Asian visitors in front of Guernica at that
time, as if we were some kind of troublemakers, some visitors took photos
using cell phone, and they went unnoticed. I was angered by her rudeness,
and later, I did file a formal complaint. I wonder if I get any response,
though. The museum attracts visitors form all over the world, and the fact
that they let a security officer, who does not know how to treat people
equally, work in front of one the most famous art works is a shame. I guess
there is no such thing as sensitivity training for those security people. My
family and I have visited many museums in Europe, such as Prado, Louvre and
so on. We have never been treated in this manner before.



Yoshiko Landry