Obras de paso. Retrato de Emilia Pardo Bazán

Museo Cerralbo is exhibiting this portrait of the writer Emilia Pardo Bazán from 8 September to 10 January 2027, as part of the exhibition project Obras de paso. Cerralbo y las mujeres protectoras del Patrimonio Cultural, which highlights the artist and countess's role as a promoter of heritage.

In Cerralbo y las mujeres protectoras del Patrimonio Cultural, two philanthropists are presented through respective portraits: Regla Manjón y Mergelina, Countess of Lebrija (1851-1938) and Emilia Pardo-Bazán y de la Rúa Figueroa, Countess of Pardo Bazán (1851-1921). Their dedication fostered an awareness of the need to protect knowledge, works of art, monuments and archaeological sites from different spheres at an early and limited time.

Following the exhibition of the previous portrait of Regla Manjón y Mergelina, it is now the turn of the portrait of Emilia Pardo Bazán, showcasing her important work as a promoter of heritage through her close relationship with the Marquess of Cerralbo and other scholars of the era. Invited to the festivities at the palace on Calle Ventura Rodríguez, the countess, with her extensive literary and journalistic output, contributed to the spread of new archaeological interpretations and to shaping opinion regarding the presentation of historical heritage, as seen in her 1912 novel En las cavernas, without forgetting her defence of women's rights.

With this proposal, which for the first time includes two important Spanish house-museums from Seville and A Coruña respectively, collaboration is made possible in Madrid between three institutions with many shared characteristics: the intellectual prominence of their founders, the museum typology, and the preservation of private and public legacies that are opened up to research and the public, serving as an example of generosity and responsibility over time.