It is my  pleasure to introduce a new post of  Teresa Vega  about Salvador Dalí , a Spanish painter, draughtsman, illustrator, sculptor, writer and film maker. One of the most prolific artists of the 20th century, his fantastic imagery and flamboyant personality also made him one of the best known. His most significant artistic contribution was through his association with Surrealism. A few days ago, the amazing Dali Exhibition at the Reina Sofía Museum in Madrid finished, after attracting more than 730.000 visitors, making it the most visited art show in the history of our city.Fortunately The Reina Sofia permanent…

Pliny the Elder told the story of two rival painters, Zeuxis and Parrhasius, who were competing to see who could produce the most realistic painting. The story goes that Zeuxis had painted a picture of grapes so realistically, that birds were deceived enough to peck at the fruit. After Parrhasius finished his painting, he invited Zeuxis to his studio. Zeuxis tried to lift the curtain from the panel to see the painting underneath. To his surprise, the panel was a painting of a curtain. Zeuxis conceded that Parrhasius was a better painter, whereas he had deceived only birds, Parrhasius had…

While walking this morning around the beautiful rooms of the Thyssen Museum I was wondering ‘Is there in Art history more beautiful period than the Italian Quattrocento?’  It is a pity not to be now contemplating the frescoes of The visitation by Ghirlandaio in Santa Maria Novella Church at Florence.  But at least I´m here just in front of this beautiful lady portrait: Her name was Giovanna and belonged to one of the most powerful families of Florence in the Quattrocento. In 1486 she married Lorenzo Tornabuoni, a leading nobleman of the Court of Lorenzo the Magnificent. When she died,…

In our search of peace we have come across this treasure:  the National Museum of Romanticism or, briefly, the Romantic Museum. Set in a 18th century Neo-classical mansion, its origin is due to the initiative of Benigno de la Vega-Inclán, who decided to donate his personal collection of paintings and furniture to create it. In 1924 Madrid’s Romantic museum was opened to the public and since then, it has never stopped growing. The Museum collections are arranged as in a wealthy bourgeois home during the romantic period. It boasts nowadays a magnificent collection of 19th century paintings, as well as…

Summer tends to bring out the best in everyone, including the multitude of temporary exhibitions around the city. Explore the worlds of contemporary art, history painting, fashion, photography, modern portraits and architecture at the best places in town. This is your chance to visit the biggest shows at the major venues and see what all the fuss is about. Here is our selection: Hidden Beauty “Fra Angelico to Fortuny” Museo del Prado Fra Angelico to Fortuny offers an historical-artistic survey of the  Museo del Prado collections,with more than 250 paintings in which the common denominator is their small size, reflecting…