Sketches of Spain

“Sketches of Spain – Highlights from Old Masters and Modern Spanish painting from the National Gallery of Art” is a series of Gallery Talks by the National Gallery of Art.

The talks will be given in both the West and East Buildings and include Spanish masters from the eighteenth through twentieth centuries.

The West Building talks will dive into some of the most famous Spanish paintings, by renowned masters from Doménikos Theotokópoulos “El Greco” to Salvador Dalí, following the Spanish tradition of painting and history. Spanish Empire, Siglo de Oro (Golden Age), Ilustración (Enlightenment) and the most important historic facts will be traced by the great Spanish masters, such as Francisco de Goya and Diego Velázquez.

Pablo Picasso, Joan Miró, and Juan Gris will be the focus of the East Building talks, as some of the most representative artists of Spanish modernism. Considered one of the geniuses of painting, Picasso’s work continues to inspire artists today. His work reflects his own evolution, but also the evolution of twentieth-century arts. Talks will take notice of his style and its changes by exploring some of his most famous works.

Juan Gris embraced Cubism influenced by Pablo Picasso and he did it in a masterfully way. His paintings Ace of Clubs and Four of Diamonds and Fantômas reflect his importance for Cubism and Spanish Arts.

Joan Miró’s La Masía (The Farm) and Head of a Catalan Peasant will show the artist evolution from self-taught painting to Surrealism and conceptual art.

Schedule

West Building (meet in the Rotunda at noon):

• On February 17. In Spanish.
• On February 20. In Spanish.
• On February 23. In English.

East Building (meet in the Atrium at noon):

• On February 24. In English.
• On February 27. In Spanish.
• On February 28. In English.