El Greco [antikvár]

The Mnseo Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid, the Palazzo delle Esposizioiii in Rome and the National Gallery-Alexandros Sotitzos Museum in Athens are the three centres responsible for hosting the exhibition entitled El Greco. Identity and Transformation, organized jointly by the Mnseo Nacional del Prado and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza. The three countries involved in the exhibition are the indispensable points of reference for understanding the formation and evolution of the artist's style. Of Cretan origin, 'el Griego de Toledo', as he was called by Fray Hortensio Felix de Paravicino, was trained within the traditional parameters of Post-Byzantine art. In Crete he reached the level of'maestro' and it was there that he accomplished his first works, which established his incipient reputation. Probably, at the beginning of 1567 El Greco left the island to move to Venice. A few years later, in 1570, he was to settle in Rome. El Greco's Italian years put hitn in contact with the art of Titian, Tintoretto, Raphael or Michelangelo, all painters on whom he made eloquent comments in his annotations to his copy of Vasari's Lives, and in Barbara's edition of Vitruvius. In 1377 he was already in Spain, in the hope, perhaps, of working for Philip U on the decoration of El Escorial. Finding this desire frustrated, the artist settled definitively in Toledo. There he was to receive the patronage of a series of learned and influential figures, and created his most unique works. This exhibition brings together unique works by the artist executed in the three countries in which he spent his life. Through them it is possible to appreciate a gradual and fascinating evolution that starts with paintings of marked Post-Byzantine character, then moving into the visual imiverse of the Italian Renaissance and culminating tn the creation of his wholly personal art in Toledo. To coincide with the exhibition, a catalogue is being published in which specialists from Greece, Italy, Spain and Great Britain analyze, from different standpoints, concrete and complementary aspects of the painter Their analyses constitute an updating of studies on El Greco, contributing, together with a review of previous scholarship, new paths of investigation that will undoubtedly help to provide a more complete profile of his personality. This project impinges upon the cultural heritage of three Mediterranean countries, united, in this case, by their interest in a figure common to all three. The opportunity that El Greco now offers us to contribute to cultural exchange is a further step forward in our work and a point of reference for future collaborative projects. I ioish to thank the Italian Minister for Heritage and Cultural Activities, Giovanna Melandri, and the Greek Minister of Culture, Evangelos Venizelos, for their collaboration in this extraordinaij project. Also, the Museo Thyssen-Borneinisza, luhich, with their dedication and effort, have made this exhibition possible. Esperanza Agiiirre Minister of Education and Culture of the Kingdom of Spain