Réplicas del Prado en Zaragoza y Campo de Belchite hasta septiembre

Cortes de Aragón, the Museo Nacional del Prado, and Telefónica have joined forces in the cultural project «En un lugar de…Aragón», which will allow visitors to see, until September 16, a total of 17 reproductions of masterpieces currently on display in Madrid, in the city of Zaragoza, and in the 15 municipalities of the Campo de Belchite region in Zaragoza.
Replicas of the exhibited works include «The Battle of Saint George and the Dragon» by Rubens, in the Patio de San Martín de la Aljafería; and «Mona Lisa» from Leonardo da Vinci’s workshop, at the Tourist Office of the Provincial Council of Zaragoza.
In the Belchite region, «The Annunciation» by Fra Angelico in Plenas; «Charles V on Horseback from Mülhberg» by Titian in Azuara; «Cardinal» by Raphael in Samper del Salz; «Judith at the Banquet of Holofernes» by Rembrandt in Fuendetodos; and «The Spinners» by Velázquez in Almochuel.
Also, ‘The Surrender of Breda’ by Velázquez in Codo; ‘Boys on the Beach’ by Sorolla in Almonacid de la Cuba; «Mary Tudor» by Antonio Moro in Lagata; ‘Jacob’s Dream’ by Ribera in Valmadrid; «Saint Elizabeth of Portugal» by Zurbarán in Moneva; «Venus and Adonis» by Veronese in Letux; ‘Parasol’ by Goya in Belchite; «The Crossing of the Styx» by Patinir in La Puebla de Albortón; “The Embarkation of the Roman Saint Paula” by Claudio de Lorena in Lécera; and «Philip II» by Sofonisba Anguissola in Moyuela.
The President of the Cortes, Marta Fernández, presented the exhibition in the Patio de San Martín, in La Aljafería, where she indicated that their roadmap includes «promoting cultural action and structuring the territory through culture, with a mandatory stop at the house of all Aragonese people, La Aljafería.»
She pointed out that during the exhibition of «The Battle between Saint George and the Dragon,» visitors can contemplate in the Patio de San Martín «a full-scale and high-quality reproduction» of Rubens’ original work.
«It will be thousands of people who can contemplate and admire it in this entrance courtyard of the Palace of La Aljafería, because this palace is one of the most visited in Aragon, with over 300,000 visits per year,» Fernández noted.
She explained that «this life-size replica of ‘The Battle of Saint George and the Dragon’ by the Baroque painter of the Flemish school, Peter Paul Rubens, was made between 1605 and 1607. It has a real size of 309 x 257 centimeters and is an indisputable piece of work for its symbolism, as I mentioned before, because, on the one hand, a charter from the Cortes of Calatayud in 1461 established that the festivity of Saint George should be celebrated in Aragon on April 23. , because the constitutive session of the current Cortes of Aragon also established that the day of Aragon would be April 23, Saint George’s Day.»
«The exhibition aims to start a journey called by the organizers ‘Prado in the empty Spain’ and begins in Aragon in outdoor public spaces,» continued Fernández, indicating that «it is composed of high-quality photographic reproductions of a selection of the main works from the museum’s collection, and after a three-month stay until September 26, as I said, it will embark on a tour of other communities.
By exhibiting works in 15 locations in Aragon, visitors can enjoy a chronological journey through the different schools that make up the artistic panorama of the permanent collection of the Prado Museum from the 15th century to the early years of the 20th century.»
«The project will allow us to learn, through painting, part of the history of Spain and Europe guided by the great masters of Spanish, Italian, Flemish, French, German, and Dutch painting.»
After being exhibited in Aragon, the exhibition will move to other regions of Spain. «The name of the exhibition, ‘In a place in…,’ refers to the beginning of one of the most recognizable works of Spanish literature – ‘Don Quixote’ – as an evocative formula to convey the spirit of universality and closeness that animates this project,» added the President of the Aragonese Parliament.
Telefónica’s Public Administration Manager, Raúl Blasco, emphasized the company’s «commitment and defense of culture,» hence the «development of initiatives to expand access to Spanish cultural heritage worldwide.»
«As a benefactor of the visitor service program at the Prado Museum, Telefónica is behind the main milestones of the digital transformation of this great Spanish institution,» he said, adding that «we are collaborating in the production of a microsite within the Prado Museum’s website, along with the creation of the video dedicated to this project, which includes scenes of the installation of the works, context, and environment to disseminate the content of this initiative.»
The Director of Communication of the Museo Nacional del Prado, Carlos Chaguaceda, highlighted that the works whose reproductions are exhibited «belong to all of us here, to millions of Spaniards, and to the common heritage of Humanity,» emphasizing the Prado’s interest in bringing their works closer to «citizens farthest from urban centers,» trusting that «all citizens will make them their own by getting to know this wonderful land, Aragon, and especially the Belchite region.»
Chaguaceda mentioned that the Prado promotes other cultural projects in Sarajevo and Montevideo, as well as in various Spanish autonomous communities, and in the case of this exhibition, their interest is to take it to less populated areas. «Find good places to launch this initiative,» he pointed out.
«The Prado’s will is to be the true national museum, and it is national when it is throughout the territory, whether there are many or few people, because all people have the right to be close to culture.»
The President of the «Territorio Goya» Association, Rafael Navarro Galarraga, explained that this entity aims to promote the Campo de Belchite, highlighting that «it is inevitable that Goya’s shadow sponsors all activities.»
«What interests us is promotion through cultural means, so that visitors get to know the territory and its richness,» continued Navarro, considering that «territories mark the population that inhabits them, and the population that inhabits them marks the territory, in a symbiosis.»
FUENTE