Release Date: September 17, 2009

National Gallery of Art Honors Hispanic Heritage Month with Exhibitions, Programs, Tours, and Online Offerings

Washington, DC—As Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15 to October 15 this year, the National Gallery of Art presents a wide array of offerings honoring this rich and diverse cultural legacy. It coincides with the exhibition The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain and its many concurrent activities and programs. In addition to these special events, the Gallery regularly offers Spanish-language guided tours, audio guides, and printed guides to the art collection.

Exhibition

The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain
West Building, through November 1
For the first time in history, Spanish armor from the celebrated Royal Armory in Madrid is paired with portraits of rulers wearing the same armor. View some 75 works, including full suits of armor, helmets, shields, and equestrian armor. National Gallery of Art is the only venue worldwide. Audio tour available at entrance to exhibition.

The exhibition has been organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington, the State Corporation for Spanish Cultural Action Abroad (SEACEX), and the Patrimonio Nacional of Spain.

The exhibition has been organized in association with the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and the Ministry of Culture, with the assistance of the Embassy of Spain in Washington, DC.

It is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

In kind promotional support for this exhibition has been provided by Chef José Andrés of Jaleo and THINKfoodGROUP.

Exhibition Resource Table

To allow the young—and young at heart—to expand their understanding of the themes and objects on display in The Art of Power, an educational resource table located at the entrance of the exhibition includes books, armor replicas, fabrics, and artists' materials. Gallery staff is on hand Monday through Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Saturday 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., and Sunday 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. to answer questions and engage visitors.

When Armor Was Art Self-Guided Tour

Available at the exit to the Art of Power exhibition through November 1, a self-guided tour When Armor Was Art highlights 25 works of art in the National Gallery's permanent collection. The guide helps visitors find images of armored saints and sinners, portraits of European rulers, helmets, medals, and tapestries throughout the West Building. Ranging from miniature to monumental, these works also demonstrate both the prominence of armor and its symbolic significance.

Garden Café España

Through November 1
National Gallery of Art, West Building, Ground Floor
Dine on a menu of signature Spanish dishes created by award-winning Washington-based chef José Andrés, executive chef of Jaleo and star of the PBS television series Made in Spain. In honor of The Art of Power, two dishes were adapted from Arte de Cocina (first published in 1611) by Francisco Martínez Montiño, chef to Philip II. For more information or to make reservations, please call (202) 712-7454 or visit www.nga.gov/dining.

Lecture

Images for an Empire: Charles V and the Visual Arts
Sunday, September 27, 2:00 p.m.
East Building Auditorium
Miguel Falomir, Andrew W. Mellon Professor, Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts, National Gallery of Art

Films

El Perro Negro: Stories from the Spanish Civil War
preceded by Guernica
Sunday, September 27, 4:30 p.m.
East Building Auditorium
El Perro Negro: Stories from the Spanish Civil War (2005) is an extraordinary view of Spain during the chaotic 1930s, assembled by media artist Péter Forgács from his collection of amateur home movie footage. Alain Resnais' classic 1950 short film Guernica combines motifs from Picasso's paintings with Paul Éluard's poetic text on the besieged Spanish town.

Concerts

National Gallery Brass Quintet
Friday, September 18, 5:30–7:15 p.m.
Sculpture Garden
Works from 18th-century Spain as well as contemporary arrangements

Brazilian Guitar Quartet
Friday, September 25, 5:30–7:15 p.m.
Sculpture Garden

Choral Arts Society of Washington
Sunday, October 11, 6:30 p.m.; doors open at 6:00 p.m.
West Building, West Garden Court
Norman Scribner, artistic director; Douglas Riva, pianist
Music by Enrique Granados and other Spanish composers

Gallery Talks

The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain (60 mins.)
West Building Main Floor, Rotunda
Spanish version:
September 18, 26, and October 28 at noon
October 8 at 2:00 p.m.
October 20 at 1:00 p.m.
English version:
September 25 at 11:00 a.m.

Slashing the Enemy: Battle Representations on Tapestries (30 mins.)
West Building Main Floor, Rotunda
October 6, 9, and 12 at 2:00 p.m.
Oliver Tostmann, Andrew W. Mellon Curatorial Fellow, National Gallery of Art

Guided Tours in Spanish

West Building Highlights in Spanish
West Building: noon; East Building: 2:00 p.m.
October 6, 15, and 17

American Art in Spanish
West Building Main Floor, Rotunda
September 25 and October 23 at noon

Audio Guides

The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain
Audio tours are available at the entrance to the exhibition for $5 per tour. Narrated by Gallery director Earl A. Powell III, this tour includes commentary by Alvaro Soler del Campo, director, Royal Armory, Madrid, and David Alan Brown, curator, Italian and Spanish paintings, National Gallery of Art, Washington.

The Director's Tour: Highlights in Spanish
West Building, Mall Entrance
(Self-guided tour features 24 stops)

Spanish-Language Gallery Guides

National Gallery of Art Visitor Guide in Spanish
A guide containing a brief history of the National Gallery of Art, visitor information, and map is available at the information desks and online at www.nga.gov/pdf/map_spanish.pdf.

Online Podcasts, Features, and Collection Tours

Video Podcast—The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain
Views of the dramatic installation of rare suits of armor worn by Spanish kings along with royal portraits and magnificent tapestries from the Renaissance are accompanied by music and brief remarks from the press preview on June 23, 2009, for this stunning and historic exhibition. Speakers include Earl A. Powell III, director, National Gallery of Art; His Excellency D. Jorge Dezcallar, ambassador of Spain; Yago Pico de Coaña, president, Patrimonio Nacional; Charo Otegui Pascual, executive president, SEACEX; Alvaro Soler del Campo, director, Royal Armory, Madrid, and chief curator, Patrimonio Nacional; and José Andrés, chef and owner, Jaleo and THINKfoodGROUP.

Audio Podcast—The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain
In this podcast produced on the occasion of the exhibition, David Alan Brown, curator of Italian and Spanish paintings, National Gallery of Art, talks with Alvaro Soler del Campo, director, Royal Armory, Madrid, and chief curator, Patrimonio Nacional, about how armor, tapestries, and portraits were used to cultivate the image of royal power in late 15th- to 18th-century Spain.

Audio Podcast—Garden Café España and the Culinary Traditions of Spain
Alvaro Soler del Campo, director, Royal Armory, Madrid, and chief curator, Patrimonio Nacional; José Andrés, chef and owner, Jaleo and THINKfoodGROUP
Inspired by two Gallery exhibitions—Luis Meléndez: Master of the Spanish Still Life and The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain—renowned chef José Andrés created a special menu of signature Spanish dishes for the National Gallery's Garden Café. In this podcast, produced to celebrate the Garden Café España, Soler and Andrés discuss the past five centuries of Spanish culinary traditions, ranging from a rare book of recipes by the cook to King Philip II, still enjoyed today, to luscious food items in the paintings of Meléndez.

Online Feature—The Art of Power: Royal Armor and Portraits from Imperial Spain
An interactive exhibition Web feature for the exhibition allows visitors to learn about Spanish royal armor and the historical figures who wore it. Find out more about the portraits and intricate tapestries that show the armor in use, and explore the many exhibition-related activities and programs that the Gallery has to offer.

Online Feature—Luis Meléndez: Master of the Spanish Still Life
Luis Meléndez (1715–1780) is now recognized as the premier still-life painter in 18th-century Spain, indeed one of the greatest in all of Europe. This online feature from the exhibition held at the National Gallery of Art showcases the master's virtuoso talent for rendering everyday objects with exacting detail, marvelous effects of color and light, and subtle variations of texture.
Date: May 17–August 23, 2009 (past exhibition at the National Gallery of Art)
Exhibition on view at Los Angeles County Museum of Art, September 23, 2009–January 3, 2010