The museum was inaugurated in 1963 in the Aguilar Gothic Palace at Montcada 15. Seven years later, the museum was expanded by the city council by annexing the Palau del Baró de Balaguer at Montcada 17, and later added the Palau Meca at Montcada 19. In 1999, another museum enlargement was inaugurated as Casa Mauri and the Palau Finestres were restored, and this is where temporary exhibitions were currently held. The five mentioned palaces are a magnificent treasury of the present-day Barcelona Picasso Museum. In 1970, the artist donated a total of 920 works of various techniques, which had been safeguarded by three generations of his family, namely his parents, sister and his sister’s children. New acquisitions and donations are constantly enlarging the permanent collections.

The Picasso Museum reveals Picasso’s entire academic training, the guidance of his father and the painting schools of Corunna, Barcelona and Madrid. From 1890 to 1897, Picasso’s work reveals the mastery of the necessary painting skills, which gave him confidence to present his canvases at official competitions. His period works include the 'First Communion' (1896) and 'Science and Charity' (1897). Picasso’s relationship with the Catalan avant-garde movement, Modernisme, is mirrored in a series of portraits of his friends at the tavern, Els Quatre Gats, the time’s epicenter of artistic and intellectual life. From 1900, Picasso made a series of trips to Paris, where he contacted European avant-garde movements. His period work displays a marked Post-Impressionist influence, such as in 'Margot and the Dwarf Dancer' (1901). The site also showcases the artist’s transition to his monochromatic Blue Period (1901-1904), such as 'The Tragedy' (1903) and 'The Madman' (1904).

In 1905, following a return to Classicism, Picasso painted the 'Portrait of Señora Canals', characteristic of the artist’s Rose Period. The excitement and stylistic transition of Picasso’s art, which dominated in 1917, are evident in the group of works during his travels to Barcelona, accompanying Serge Diaghilev’s Ballet Russes. Picasso’s collection of engravings mark the innovations which he introduced, as well as his prolific work, displaying a wealth of techniques and subject matter. The Picasso Museum’s collection of engravings showcases particularly his work in 1962 – 1972. The ceramics ensembles include 41 pieces, a 1982 bequest by Jacqueline Picasso which were created between 1947 and 1965, and show many iconographic and technical innovations.