AUTHOR’S TRAVEL – The Extremadura, a region rich in contrasts

When you decide to travel, you often associate nations with a trip to the major capitals, or to some impressive places. But in Spain there is a region to discover, absolutely fascinating: the Extremadura. On this page you can find out how to visit the Spanish Extremadura in an unusual way, accompanied by the artistic creativity of someone who is born under this sky.

FRANCISCO DE ZURBARAN loved to paint his figures directly from nature, making great use of draperies, in which he was particularly competent. His paintings were a source of inspiration for many artists, even for Dalí and Picasso. His wonderful painting “San Ugo in the Carthusian Refectory” is visible at the Museum of Fine Arts in Seville.

Because of health problems, he could not have an active part in the Spanish civil war, but he backed the Republican cause. VICENTE ALEIXANDRE, Nobel Prize for Literature in 1977, was born in Seville on April 1898, but spends his childhood in Malaga, then follows the family in Madrid where he studied law and economics.

It is unknown if FRANCISCO DE ZURBARAN have had the opportunity to see the paintings of Caravaggio, but his work has, like the painter, a realistic use of chiaroscuro and tenebrism. Born in Fuente de Cantos, in Extremadura, this profoundly religious artist was able to represent the counter-reformist religiosity of the Spanish Church of the 17th century.

His work, mainly narrative, is characterized by the mixing of various literary genres, with the use of chronicle union and essay with fiction. His works tend to be set in urban environments (at present or in a past not too far away), and have a pleasant tone. JAVIER CERCAS MENA is a Spanish writer and essayist, born in 1962 in Ibahernando, a municipality in the Extremadura.

The lyrics of their songs deal with topics like sex, drugs and love, without reference to politics. They define their music as transgressive rock. EXTREMODURO is a Spanish rock group formed in 1987 in Plasencia (Extremadura city). The rock group had immediately noticed for their musical style. Plasencia is a fortified town on a hill, on the border between Estremadura and Castile, on the Ruta de la Plata. Among the things to be missed are the remains of the Roman aqueduct and the double circle of walls that surround the city (with 6 doors and 68 towers). Nearby, Jarandilla de la Vera, awaits you on a huge 15th-century castle, nowadays transformed into a Parador Nacional.

At Las Navas del Marqués, VICENTE ALEIXANDRE he had met a man who helped him in discovering his literary vocation. In 1925 he was struck by a disease that forced him to abandon his work and spend a long period of rest. Returning to Madrid, he lives in a house in Velintonia (home of poetry and friendship), a meeting point of writers and intellectuals of the time. Already immersed between the Christian north and the Muslim south, the city of Las Navas del Marqués owes its name to the Marquis de Don Pedro de Davila, who had ordered the palace of the castle of Magalia, built around 1540. At the end of your city tour, you can go to the Druid Celtic (at Plaza Nueva number 6), a restaurant that offers dishes at very affordable prices and personal attention to your needs.

The figures painted by FRANCISCO DE ZURBAN come to symbolize intense spirituality in the vast production of his sacred subjects. Modern is his conception of the still life, constantly in search of volumes, obtained by grouping objects. In the final phase of his activity, in extremely modern ways, he devoted himself to the still-dead. His oil painting (Agnus Dei, 38 x 62 cm) is housed in the Prado Museum in Madrid.

The intellectual property of the images that appear in this blog correspond to their authors. The sole purpose of this site, is to spread the knowledge of these artists and that other people enjoy their works. To pursue this issue, you can digit: http://meetingbenches.com/2017/10/extremadura-images-spain/