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My name is Antonio Macías Pizarro. I began working at the Museum around 33 or 34 years ago. I'm not quite sure because I'm not good at remembering dates. When I got here the Museum was still the old Museum and the Casón [del Buen Retiro] was the old Casón. I've witnessed all the reforms at the Museum. When I first came here, nearly all the floors were wooden and the same went for the floors at the Casón. Now it's completely different. At the time the director was Mr. Pita Andrade. I don't know whether you know about him... A great person. I cannot complain about anyone. I came here because I was working for the Spanish newspaper "Arriba" and they shut it down, so we got to choose where we wanted to work. Some went to the Ministry and others came here. I liked it and thought to myself, I'm staying here. In those days we came every Sunday and just for a few hours, the passage from night to day to fill a shift in which the Museum was virtually empty. We did that for about four months. Then they extended our working hours and I came to the morning shift. That lasted about five or six months.
Next I worked in the afternoon. It was a better shift for me, and I worked for some time in that afternoon shift. Then I worked for a few months at the ticket office but I didn't want to have to handle money. Then they offered some posts and I got one that I was interested in, because it meant working for two nights and four days off. Fantastic. I thought, ‘this is just what I need’. All my life, ever since the days at the newspaper, I have worked as a self-employed cab driver. Here at the Museum there were many workers in that situation. Some were wall painters, others distributed olives and others were cab drivers. Here I have talked people into becoming drivers... With our wages here we earned just enough for cigarettes and breakfast.
He has worked at the Museum for the Night Surveillance Service for more than three decades.
Interview recorded on December 05, 2017
