The Price of Art

On Sunday, though hoping for a day to sleep and rest, I rose early in the morning and went to the Prado Museum. As i have stated many times before, the Prado is one of the greatest museums in the world, and every time I go, I see something new. This morning, though, i was not there for the paintings. I had read on Facebook, the night before, that the Prado conducted tours to see the famous ceiling by Luca Giordano in El Cason del Buen Retiro. El Cason del Buen Retiro is one of two remaining parts of El Palacio del Buen Retiro, a luxurious pleasure palace built for the kings outside the city of Madrid, surrounded by a giant park and gardens, now known as El Parque del Buen Retiro. The palace was later destroyed by enemy soldiers. Admission to see the ceiling was free with a ticket to El Prado, and so, i went. The ceiling was an absolute wonder. Hundreds of figures from mythology were alive on the ceiling, lions, dragons, and cherubs floated. It was amazing to see that large a composition still intact after hundreds of years. Later, i went across the street to see the other part of the palace. Until recently it was the war museum of Spain (which has since been moved to the Alcazar de Toledo which i wrote about a few weeks ago). Inside now, is a temporary exhibition of architecture and the building is in transition to become a place of public exhibitions. Some of the original rooms of the palace are still intact, though neglected, and there is even an obligatory Moorish Room inspired by the Alhambra of Granada (which i am going to after Spring Break). I then reentered the Prado and went to see my favorite paintings by El Greco, Las Majas by Goya, and La Maninas by Velasquez. After a quick browse through the discounted items from past exhibitions such as Turner and the Masters ( which I have also written about), i bought a modern version of La Enfanta from a street artist and went home to finish studying for my Business examination. As a side note, last week I had finished my transfer request to return to Boston for the coming fall, hoping to beat the housing rush, and promptly received a confirmation this week. Also, my Senora is allowing me to have a small dinner party for my birthday this weekend. Tortilla de patata and burritos con carne are both on the list. For dessert are gluten free cake and crepes con chocolate, i cannot wait!