Casón del Buen Retiro facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Casón del Buen Retiro |
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East façade
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| General information | |
| Architectural style | Baroque |
| Location | Madrid, Spain |
| Address | 28, Alfonso XII Street |
| Coordinates | 40°24′55″N 3°41′22″W / 40.41525°N 3.689569°W |
| Completed | 1637 |
| Renovated | 19th Century |
| Management | Museo del Prado |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Alonso Carbonel |
| Renovating team | |
| Architect | Mariano Carderera, Ricardo Velázquez Bosco |
| Criteria: | Cultural: (ii), (iv), (vi) |
| Designated: | 2021 (44th session) |
| Part of: | Paseo del Prado and Buen Retiro, a Landscape of Arts and Sciences |
| Reference #: | 1618 |
The Casón del Buen Retiro is a special building in Madrid, Spain. It's part of the famous Museo del Prado museum complex. After big renovations finished in October 2007, it became home to the museum's study center and library. This is a place where people can learn and read about art.
For a while, from 1981 to 1992, a very famous painting by Picasso called Guernica was shown here. It came from New York's Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Later, it moved to another museum, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, where it is now.
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A Look at History
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The Casón del Buen Retiro was built a long time ago in the 1600s. It was originally the ballroom, or Salón de Baile, for the grand Buen Retiro Palace. Most of that palace is gone now. Only two buildings remain: the Casón and the Salón de Reinos. The Casón is located near the Puerta de Felipe IV entrance on the west side of Retiro Park.
One big reason the Casón building survived when other parts of the palace were torn down was a special painting. This painting is a large picture on the ceiling called The Allegory of the Golden Fleece. It was painted around 1694 by an artist named Luca Giordano. King Charles II of Spain asked him to create it. This ceiling painting is considered a masterpiece and is a very important part of the Prado's collection.
What the Building Was Used For
From 1877 to 1960, the Casón was used as the Museo de Reproducciones Artísticas. This museum was started by the government leader at the time, Antonio Canovas del Castillo. Later, this collection moved to the Museo de América.
After that, the Casón building was used for temporary art shows until 1971. From 1971 to 1981, the Museo del Prado used it to display paintings and sculptures from the 1800s. These artworks used to be in the Museo de Arte Moderno. As mentioned earlier, from 1981 to 1992, the Casón was home to Picasso’s famous Guernica painting.
The Prado Library
The library of the Museo del Prado is located on the ground floor of the Casón building. It has a Reading Room where researchers, museum staff, and students can study. The main collection of books is stored in the basements.
The library has about 70,000 books. Many of these books came from two special private collections. One was from José María Cervelló. The other was from the Daza-Madrazo family. Many of these books belonged to the painter José de Madrazo, who was the director of the Museo del Prado from 1838 to 1851.
Escuela del Prado
The Escuela del Prado is a school that is part of the Museo del Prado. It is also located inside the Casón building. This school helps people learn more about art and museum work.
Building Improvements
From 1997 to 2007, the Casón building was closed for a big renovation project. During this time, two new floors were dug out underground. This nearly doubled the amount of space inside the building, making it much larger and more modern.
External links
See also
In Spanish: Casón del Buen Retiro para niños
