The Francisco Godia Foundation was set up in 1999 by Liliana Godia to honour the memory of her father, Francisco Godia, a brilliant businessman, car enthusiast and art lover.

The Francisco Godia Foundation opened on 1 December 1999 in a first-floor flat in Carrer València in the Eixample neighbourhood of Barcelona, a modest building in which its work could begin.

Exhibitions were held there to display various parts of the collection together with lecture series and workshops for children and school students. Other private collections were also displayed there since the foundation is aware of the important role that private collectors play as a protective and driving force behind our cultural and creative heritage.

Nine years after it was set up, the foundation moved to a grand building: the former Casa Garriga Nogués built by the architect Enric Sagnier. He was the most prolific architect in the well-known Eixample neighbourhood of Barcelona. The foundation's new location allowed us to display the collection better. There are approximately 1,500 pieces on display including paintings, sculpture, glasswork and pottery.

It is one of the largest private collections in Spain and takes visitors on a tour through Catalan, Spanish and international art from the 12th to the 21st centuries. The collection includes works by artists such as Jaume Huguet, Lluís Borrassà, Llorenç Saragossa, Martín de Soria, Felipe de Bigarny, Alejo de Vahía, Pedro Berruguete, Juan van der Hamen, Francisco de Zurbarán, Joaquín Sorolla, Ramon Casas, Santiago Rusiñol, Joaquim Mir, Isidre Nonell, Julio González, Pablo Picasso, Juan Gris, Joan Miró, René Magritte, Fernand Léger, Karel Appel, Antoni Tàpies, Eduardo Chillida, Miquel Barceló and Cristina Iglesias.