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I’ve been retired for a long time. I’ve worked for most of my life in the Ministry of Education where I’ve held numerous different positions.
I think the Museo del Prado is the city’s most important cultural institution far above any other. Everything in Madrid, between Cibeles and the Atocha roundabout, is beyond price. The Prado is something that has to be cared for and I think that it’s been very well cared for. Obviously as it’s the Prado it’s not difficult to reach agreements as everyone thinks it’s an important institution which is above ideological differences. Anyone with some knowledge and experience can see that the Prado has to have a Board of Trustees which works well, it has to have funds and has to grow: we shouldn’t interfere politically as it’s a public asset, it’s the shared heritage of all Spaniards. So who does the Prado belong to? It belong to people from Extremadura, from Catalonia, from Madrid, from Aragon…It belongs to all Spaniards and what’s more, I would say it belongs to Europe and the world.
Grandson of José Prieto, Lead Concierge of the Museo Nacional del Prado during the 1940s, when he was a child he lived with his family in one of the homes belonging to the Museum.
Interview recorded on February 20, 2018
