Discover the Virgin of Guadalupe exhibition at the Prado with an expert guide — where art, history, and emotion come to life.
The Museo Nacional del Prado presents the exhibition “So Far, So Close: Guadalupe of Mexico in Spain,” on view from June 10 to September 14, 2025. Curated by Jaime Cuadriello (UNAM) and Paula Mues Orts (INAH), the exhibit offers an in-depth look at the artistic, political, and devotional phenomenon surrounding the Virgin of Guadalupe, from its origins in New Spain to its expansion throughout the Hispanic world.
The exhibition brings together around 70 works — including paintings, sculptures, prints, books, and liturgical objects — drawn mostly from Spanish collections, alongside a selection of key pieces from Mexico. Organized into eleven thematic sections, the journey takes visitors from the foundational narratives of the apparitions on Tepeyac Hill (1531) to the circulation of copies considered authentic, known as veras effigies, which were widely disseminated for devotional and diplomatic purposes.
One of the exhibition’s most striking aspects is that the Virgin of Guadalupe is considered the first globalized Marian image in the Catholic world. Her iconography transcended the Americas, reaching Europe and Asia in the 17th and 18th centuries. Her dissemination reflected the religious, political, and economic exchange networks across the territories under Spanish crown rule, where the image served as a symbol of identity, legitimacy, and spiritual unity.
The exhibition includes works by major New Spanish artists such as José Juárez, Juan Correa, Miguel Cabrera, and Manuel de Arellano, in dialogue with European masters like Zurbarán and Velázquez. These connections illustrate the transfer of styles, techniques, and devotions between continents.
The show also documents the surprising presence of the Guadalupe image in Spain, with more than a thousand representations identified in churches, convents, and private collections — including numerous cathedrals. This phenomenon was bolstered by networks such as the Manila Galleon trade, which transported objects considered exotic, such as mother-of-pearl, ivory, and lacquer, often used in religious works dedicated to Guadalupe devotion.
Beyond its devotional character, the exhibition invites reflection on the symbolic power of images in art history. The Virgin of Guadalupe functioned as a political and cultural emblem, and her expansion reveals how images could shape narratives of power, belonging, and faith in diverse contexts of the early modern world.
“So Far, So Close” is not a religious exhibition, but a historiographic and visual exercise that highlights the role of viceregal art in the processes of global cultural circulation. Its inclusion in the Prado marks an opening toward broader narratives that connect Europe and the Americas through art.
The exhibition is complemented by academic and cultural activities organized with the Fundación Casa de México en España, offering a broader context for studying this artistic and historical phenomenon.
Now, with Voilàrt, you have the chance to discover this unique exhibition accompanied by an expert guide, in small groups that guarantee a close, interactive, and personalized experience.
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