A five-euro ticket in Ronda this month buys entry into something very special and quite different from your average typical gallery visit.
A four-century journey through Spanish art
Fundacion Unicaja has brought its touring project, Luz y Verso (“Light and Verse”), to Plaza Teniente Arce in Ronda, open to the public until Sunday, September 27. Organisers describe it as a route through more than 400 years of Spanish painting, bringing together works by Diego Velazquez, Francisco de Goya, Bartolome Esteban Murillo and Joaquin Sorolla in one continuous sensory experience.
Guests stand at the centre of the dome as large-scale renderings of over twenty pieces from the Museo Nacional del Prado’s collection wrap around them. Velazquez’s Las Meninas, El Greco’s The Gentleman with his Hand on his Chest and Goya’s La maja desnuda all feature among the works brought to the curved screen.
Poetry, live music and scent bring paintings to life
Rather than just displaying static images, the show weaves verses by Lope de Vega, Miguel de Cervantes, Antonio Machado and Federico Garcia Lorca between the artworks, read aloud as a live string quartet performs original compositions. Carefully designed aromas float throughout the performance, adding a further layer intended to draw the audience deeper into each historical period on display.
Queuing time isn’t just an inconvenience, it doubles as part of the show. Outside, an “artist’s workshop” recreates a painter’s studio complete with animated pieces and creative tests, with a separate stand using artificial intelligence to generate a period-style portrait of each guest, inspired by the techniques of history’s great masters.
Times, prices and a cause worth supporting
Sessions run Tuesday to Sunday at 6pm and 8pm, with an extra midday slot added on weekends. On the final weekend, Saturday, September 26 gains additional sessions at 11am and 1pm on top of the usual evening times, with Sunday, September 27 closing out the show with just two sittings, at 11am and 1pm.
Tickets cost a flat five euros, with every penny raised going to the incredible work of Asociacion Rondeña de Alzheimer (AROAL), a local charity supporting people with neurodegenerative conditions and their families. If you fancy being whisks off to another world then bookings can be made at fundacionunicaja.com/luzyverso.
