The Spanish Golden Age expands its borders in Texas

"The exhibition, open to the public until February 1, 2026, brings together 57 works from the Hispanic Society Museum & Library in New York, an institution founded in 1904 by Archer M. Huntington and closely associated with the Blanton institution, which bore his name for almost two decades. The exhibition is a traveling one that has already been to Boca Raton in Florida and to Milwaukee, but in its Texas version it has taken on a new dimension."

"In addition to showing for the first time masterpieces by Velazquez, El Greco, Zurbaran and Murillo, the Blanton does so with its own unique gesture: by adding works from New Spain and the Viceroyalty of Peru that underline how the Baroque style was also an American language. We wanted the exhibition to be understood not only as a tribute to the Spanish monarchy, but as a space for dialogue between two shores, explains Holly Borham, curator of prints, drawings, and European art at the Blanton."

The Blanton Museum of Art at the University of Texas at Austin opened Spirit & Splendor: El Greco, Velazquez, and the Hispanic Baroque, assembling a constellation of Virgin Mary figures, saints, and court portraits from the Spanish Golden Age spanning the late 1400s to the late 1600s. The exhibition presents 57 works from the Hispanic Society Museum & Library in New York and remains on view through February 1, 2026. The traveling installation previously appeared in Boca Raton and Milwaukee, and the Texas version enriches the presentation by pairing Iberian masterpieces with works from New Spain and the Viceroyalty of Peru. The arrangement reframes Baroque as a transatlantic visual language rather than solely a European style. The galleries include first-time loans of major paintings by Velazquez, El Greco, Zurbaran, and Murillo and expand period definitions with sculpture by Luisa Roldana.

Read at english.elpais.com