Voces del Prado

The Tranquillity of a Mission Accomplished

Rafael Alonso Alonso, Restorer, 1978-2016

I put off my retirement for five years and left when I was seventy years old. So I knew that those five years would be a long goodbye. I saw pictures that I was going to restore and others that I was never going to restore, although I would’ve liked to have done so. That’s what I found most difficult to handle, saying, “that’s the end of that; you’re going to see it but you’re not going to touch it”. That was the worst, because what I really loved most of all was my work. My farewell was truly moving. It took place in the Casón del Buen Retiro. I remember there was a lot of crying; not on my part, because I didn’t cry, but Manuela Mena and Enrique Quintana did. It was very moving and very beautiful. I didn’t leave the workshop for good until two days later. When I left I was calm, because I did so with the idea that I had fulfilled a mission, and, in fact, there is nothing I regret. I’ve done everything my own way. But then I think, “what do I do now?”. But there are always things to do and, fortunately, I’m still active, because I don’t know how to sit still. My works look good. I’m very demanding with myself, but I think I’ve done what I had to do, and I think I’ve done it quite well.