Museo Del Prado

August 30th I was in Madrid and got to visit the Museo Del Prado on its 200th anniversary. Here are some of my favorite paintings and why I liked them. The Museo Del Prado collection was previously a royal collection that was shared with the public, and consisted of paintings by famous painters at the time. The collection also provided a record of the royal family.

The Garden of Earthly Delights- Triptych by Hieronymus Bosch, Grisaille/1500

• About the Painter/ Background Info:
• There are theories as to how Bosch came about to painting these wonders that were so controversial and ahead of his time.
• The one that seems most likely to me is that he suffered from fever dreams, and the way they would try to cure them was to dunk you in a cold pond- which is why there’s a pond in the middle of the painting.
• This painting was so controversial- as it conflicts with the church- that King Philip II, the owner, had to put it in his personal church and say it was a religious piece.
• What I Like About this Painting:
• The use of the triptych style is interesting as Bosch uses it to tell a story.
• The metaphors hidden in the painting are wacky but also apply to fairy tales now.
• How ahead of its time it was- the things he painted must have made him look crazy.

Portrait of Mariana of Austria by Diego Velásquez, Madrid/1652

• About the painter/Background info:
• Velásquez was known to be a favorite of the family, was a close friend to the king, and was also very talented.
• Princess Mariana was supposed to be married to her first cousin, but instead was married to her much older uncle.
• She was known to be very unhappy and despised palace life.
• This painting was risky, as her expression and objects in the painting all had symbolism that could have Velasquez killed.
• What I like about the painting:
• The meaning behind the symbols is interesting, as it displayed Mariana’s feelings on her marriage.
• The white cloth she’s holding is supposed to symbolize a white flag, a surrender.
• The clock behind her represents the ticking time she has until she’s a queen, until she’s married to her uncle, and has to produce a child.
• The black represents her mourning, as her cousin had passed, but also the mourning of her own girlhood.
• The painting is done by a master at the time, and you can easily observe the style- less precise, more brushstrokes, as it would be seen from far away on a wall, and small details wouldn’t show.

The Black Paintings- Fransisco Goya, Quinta del Sordo (Deaf Man’s Village)/1819-1823

• About the Painter/Background :
• Goya suffered two deathly diseases in his lifetime, the second leaving him deaf.
• He was sent to a village of only deaf people and suffered hysteria and general insanity.
• Goya painted all over his walls, and all the paintings were images that he saw in fever dreams.
• The paintings were later salvaged and torn off the walls by a friend.
• About the Painting/Why I like it:
• The paintings are honestly very disturbing and hard to look at- all dark colors and big brush strokes.
• The reason I liked these paintings are because of the perspective of Goya- he hated humanity and was incredibly depressed.
• Its a visual representation of his spiral, and you can see the paintings get darker and more insane as he slowly passes.
• They’re very disturbing paintings, and were never intended to be seen by the public.
• The Black Paintings also depict monsters, skulls, and horrifying scenes.
• I will include some of my favorites/ the most haunting ones, in my opinion.