CHAPEL OF THE WOMEN’S HOSPITAL IN CÁDIZ

Start and end dates: 2006-2009

Better known for its traditional use as a women’s hospital and as the current seat of the diocese, this building is considered a masterpiece of Baroque architecture in Cadiz, both for the architectural solutions it provided in its day and for the influence it exerted on later works. The Church-Chapel of Nuestra Señora del Carmen (Our Lady of Mount Caramel) also holds a splendid repertoire of art works, most notably "The Vision of Saint Francis" by El Greco.
In 2003 the building was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural (“Culturally Significant Asset”) in the “Monuments” category.

RESTORATION OF MURALS ON THE PRINCIPAL STAIRCASE OF THE DESCALZAS REALES MONASTERY (MADRID)

Start and end dates: 2008-2009

The cloister staircase is the main staircase of the palace which houses the monastery. Consisting of two flights and a broad landing, it dates from the sixteenth century, while the religious-themed decorative murals were created primarily in the seventeenth century.
The paintings, executed using a variety of techniques --fresco, tempera, and oil--, depict iconographic themes that highlight the importance of the Eucharist, devotion to the archangels, and the role of the monarchy as a patron of the arts and defender of religion.
The works were created by several different artists. The oldest paintings, by anonymous painters from the late sixteenth century, depict cloisters and gardens containing altars and statues using a trompe l’oeil technique.
Antonio Pereda painted the scenes of the Passion that appear on the right wall of the stairway, with the crucified Christ depicted between the Virgin and St. John, and four angels collecting Christ’s flowing blood in chalices. Below is a depiction of the dead Christ in a tomb surrounded by angels.
Pereda also painted the portrait of the royal family which appears on the “Royal Balcony” of the west wall: Philip IV, his wife Mariana of Austria, the princess Margarita and the prince Felipe Próspero, the then Prince of Asturias. These scenes were painted prior to 1661, the year in which the prince died at the age of four.
Ximénez Donoso and Matías de Torres painted the virtues and strengths of God the Father, represented by seven archangels, the guardian angel of the community, and the custodian angel.
Lastly, the ceiling painting of God in heaven, surrounded by angels, is by Claudio Coello.