Page 7 - El arte del poder

The exhibition The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain presents a splendid selection of armor and portraits of the Spanish monarchy, specifically from the period spanning the European discovery of America to the emergence of the United States as an independent, sovereign nation.
The Armory of the Royal Palace in Madrid has been, and remains today, the custodian of arms and armor that bear rich and complex decoration conveying an image of power, and that also provided models for official portraits as well as those commemorating notable political or military events.
The exhibition at the National Gallery of Art in Washington brings together an outstanding selection from the collection of the Royal Armory, paired with portraits of the kings of Spain from the period known as the Spanish Empire.
Together with works of armor by leading European armorers—Negroli, Helmschmid, and Campi—visitors will find superb paintings by the most prominent artists of the Renaissance and Baroque periods, including Rubens, Titian, Velázquez, Dürer, and others.
The exhibition is an extraordinary cultural event that will display, for the first time outside of Madrid, exceptional works of art, witnesses to an age in which Spain was at the height of its power and had a presence throughout most of the world.
These images of power constitute a magnificent cultural mission, one that will undoubtedly lead to a deeper understanding of Spain by the American public.
The United States and Spain have always been linked by traditional and historical ties that have set a pattern for common endeavors in the cultural, political, and social spheres. This exhibition, made possible by the collaboration of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, the National Heritage agency (Patrimonio Nacional) of Spain, and the State Corporation for Spanish Cultural Action Abroad (SEACEX), contributes in an excellent manner to the very close cooperation that already exists between the two countries.
H. M. Juan Carlos I King of Spain