The government allocates 15.2 million euros for improvements to the landscape of the light, Madrid’s museum center that has been declared a World Heritage Site
The government will spend 15.2 million euros on improvements to the landscape of light – the section of Paseo del Prado between Cibeles and Plaza del Emperador Carlos V -, of which 5,687,000 euros will be invested in the renovation of three spaces of the Reina Sofía Museum of Contemporary Art. With the new actions, the museum center aims to become an accessible, sustainable and “open to the public” place.
The Ministers of Culture and Sports, Miquel Iceta, and of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Reyes Maroto, yesterday sponsored the presentation of the reform projects that will be dealt with in the Reina Sofía, initiatives that are part of the funded plan for modernization and competitiveness for tourism with European funds. To this end, an amount of EUR 35 million is being allocated to preserve and rehabilitate the historical heritage for tourist use. The plan also includes a facelift of the National Library of Spain, worth 8.5 million euros, and a modest renovation of the Prado National Museum, for which 1.1 million euros is planned.
The architect of the museum, Rafael Hernández, and the director of the Reina Sofía, Manuel Borja Villel, explained that one of the interventions is to renovate the facades of the headquarters, a Sabatini building that receives visitors arriving in Madrid via Atocha station. The action includes the repair of both the historic building and the structures of the Nouvel extension. Hernández said several tastings have been carried out on the facade and it has been verified that the materials, consisting of bricks, are of poor quality due to poor firing, so that they are hidden by a cream or white layer.
The action will consist of repairing, consolidating and cleaning the finishes of the facades, cornices, zinc bibs and locksmiths of the Sabatini building. In addition, the metal structure, panels, slats and glass panels of the buildings are retouched.
The conditioning of these facades, with a total circumference of 1,500 longitudinal meters, will start in the spring of 2023 and the works will take approximately two years, with a budget of 1,815,000 euros. It will, the architect said, constitute an “urban landmark” that will make the museum the “gateway” to the landscape of light. «The point is not that culture lives in closed groups, but that it is offered to citizens. All these projects have that meaning because culture attracts tourists,” says Miquel Iceta. Reyes Maroto emphasized that these actions revolve around improving the tourism model, to “add quality and value to the historical heritage”.
The reform of the Palacio de Velázquez, located in the Parque del Retiro, is the second of the projects. The building is a jewel of industrial architecture from the end of the 19th century and one of the first metal buildings in Spain. It is estimated that the works can start in 2024, have an estimated duration of one and a half years and a budget of 605,000 euros.
The third of the projects is the most ambitious and includes the reform of the internal parts of the loading dock of the museum headquarters and the intervention in the entrances and surroundings of Hospital Street. The intervention will generate a square, a new urban space towards the Lavapiés district. The ultimate goal is to create none other than a “territory” in which the museum is not only “a container of works of art, but also looks at the neighbors” to become a meeting place for citizens.
These works have been added to the renovation of the State Museums and the transferred management of Cáceres and Tarragona, both declared World Heritage Sites. Eight million goes to the first and seven million to the second.
The government will also allocate 4.7 million euros for the restoration and consolidation of the castles of Sagunto (Valencia), Adsubia (Alicante) and Santed (Zaragoza). Also, several parts of the walls of Zamora and Puebla de Burgo de Osma (Soria) will be restored.
Source: La Verdad
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