Murcia hosts ‘El Prado en las Calles’

• Murcia’s Alfonso X promenade will host, until 10 May, a selection of the Museo del Prado’s most iconic works for the enjoyment of local residents and visitors alike, right in the heart of the city.
• The exhibition, promoted by the Iberdrola España Foundation, has already visited Cehegín and will next travel to Lorca and San Javier as part of its tour around the Region of Murcia.

From today until 10 May, Murcia’s Alfonso X promenade will welcome the travelling exhibition ‘El Prado en las Calles’. Residents and visitors will be able to immerse themselves in a unique open-air cultural experience, embarking on a visual journey through fifty large-format photographic reproductions of “a curated selection of masterpieces from Spain’s national art gallery.”

The exhibition offers the opportunity to admire works by some of the greatest masters in the history of painting, including Goya, Velázquez, Rubens, Dürer, Rembrandt, Bosch, Caravaggio, and Sorolla, while tracing the evolution of Western art through their creations. This initiative has been made possible thanks to the collaboration between the Museo del Prado, the Iberdrola España Foundation and the Regional Ministry of Tourism, Culture, Youth and Sports of the Government of the Region of Murcia.

The opening ceremony was attended by Patricio Sánchez, Director General for Heritage at the Regional Ministry of Tourism, Culture, Youth and Sports; Diego Avilés Correas, Councillor for Culture and Identity at Murcia City Council; Fernando Pérez Suescun, Management Technician at the Museo del Prado’s General Coordination of Education; together with Jaime Alfonsín, Chairman of the Iberdrola España Foundation; Ramón Castresana, its Director; and Miguel Ángel Cerdán, the company’s Institutional Delegate in the region.

“Murcia consistently aspires to excellence, and we are committed to offering only high-quality proposals for our city. Initiatives such as ‘El Prado en the Streets’ reaffirm our firm commitment to bringing first-class culture closer to everyone, making universal art accessible and enabling both residents and visitors to enjoy, in public spaces, some of the Museo del Prado’s most emblematic works,” emphasized Diego Avilés.

The councilor also recalled the words of painter Ramón Gaya, who once said that “when the Prado is viewed from afar, it is perceived not merely as a museum, but as a true homeland.” “Today,” he added, “that cultural homeland settles in Murcia for a few days. We feel immensely privileged to host this exhibition and I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Iberdrola Foundation for its involvement, which goes far beyond its corporate remit, helping to bring art and culture closer to the public and further consolidating Murcia’s position as a leading cultural destination.”

Patricio Sánchez highlighted that the exhibition, “supported by the regional government, represents an outstanding opportunity to place culture within everyone’s reach through an effective and educational approach to the great artistic masters of all eras and schools, using works of universal prestige. This experience may also inspire visitors to see the original artworks first-hand and discover the many treasures housed in the excellent museums found in Murcia, the wider Region and around the world.”

Jaime Alfonsín underlined that, through this initiative, “the Iberdrola España Foundation once again demonstrates its steadfast commitment to promoting art and culture by bringing them into open and accessible public spaces, allowing citizens to engage with the legacy of one of the world’s most renowned museums.” He also encouraged the public to visit the exhibition, noting the significance of Iberdrola’s 125th anniversary, which will be marked by a broad programme of activities across Spain for the enjoyment of all.

Following the opening event, catalogues provided by the Museo del Prado were donated to the documentary collections of Murcia’s Municipal Library, and attendees were invited to explore the exhibition and enjoy a stroll through the display.

To further enrich the visitor experience, each bilingual information panel includes QR codes granting access to additional digital content related to the gallery’s collections.

Since its launch in Spain in 2019, El Prado in the Streets has drawn large audiences across a wide range of locations, including Castilla-La Mancha, Castile and León, Extremadura, Andalusia, and the Valencian Community. The exhibition has so far visited 58 municipalities.

125 years of history and commitment

This year, Iberdrola is marking its 125th anniversary with an extensive programme of activities throughout Spain under the slogan ‘125 Years of Light’, evoking both the company’s historical evolution and its vision for the future.

Over the coming months, the company will roll out a dynamic agenda featuring technology and art exhibitions, music festivals, social events, and the illumination of iconic buildings, with the aim of sharing this milestone with employees, customers, shareholders, and society.

Iberdrola España Foundation, Patron Member of the Museo del Prado

The Iberdrola España Foundation focuses a core part of its activity on the preservation and enhancement of Spain’s cultural and artistic heritage. It has collaborated with the Museo del Prado since 2010, supporting conservation and restoration programmes as well as funding four annual grants for young art restorers.

In 2019, the Foundation also joined the extraordinary programme commemorating the Bicentenary of the Museo del Prado and, following its success, helped to extend this travelling exhibition across Spain.

Since 2011, the Iberdrola España Foundation has invested a total of €13 million in the field of Art and Culture, supporting initiatives such as the Lighting Programme, which covers the design, execution, and funding of artistic lighting projects for landmark buildings and heritage sites. It also supports restoration programmes at leading museum workshops dedicated to preserving artistic and pictorial heritage.

In the Region of Murcia, notable projects include the lighting of the Basilica of the Vera Cruz and its surrounding walls in Caravaca de la Cruz, as well as long-standing institutional collaborations with the Roman Theatre Museum of Cartagena since 2015 and the Salzillo Museum since 2013.