Pablo Ruiz Picasso

Waiting to be called by a painting, at the Reina Sofia...


Sacrilegious manipulation of the Guernica

I took Tatiana, who can from now on be called by her real name, following her explicit authorization, to the National Museum and Art Collection Queen Sofia. I took Ms Olga Guryakova, then, to the Reina Sofia.

The Second Floor, with its famous Picasso, Miro and Dali Rooms, was a powerful enough shower of freshness to counterbalance the 34º C outside which were baking the stones of the Plaza at ground level. The studies for Guernica, the photographic following of the Guernica-Work-in-Progress and the 3 point 5 by 8 gigantic canvas itself are awesome. ( I tell Olga that I saw Guernica in that very same trip to operatic New York, and that definitely it looked better against a non-white background.)

I remember, as always, the tip from Professor Juvenal ( Renaissance man in his own right, about whom I will blog one of these days) regarding Art Gallery visits: "Don't worry about loosing anything, relax and stroll peacefully... the paintings that matter, that will matter to you, will call you.. You just have to pay attention to their call.. then walk towards them... and spend some time there".

I regret to say that Guernica didn't really call me, although, contradicting the late Professor, I did spent obviously quite some time there. (A small bronze sculpture by Miro, "Personnage" , of 1969, did talk to me some three rooms further down).

I felt like doing something about the sacred status that painting end up acquiring .. It's like there are different Stations in a Secular Via Cruxis of Anti-Fascism, and the "Guernica" is one of them... Too much pomposity gets one close to mischief. Maybe a deliberate virtual act of cultural vandalism is in order. All it takes is the appropriate software and a digital picture of "Guernica" downloaded from the Reina Sofia website...