The Hispanic Society of America operates a museum and reference library for the study of the arts and cultures of
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, ...
and
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of th ...
and their former colonies in
Latin America
Latin America or
* french: Amérique Latine, link=no
* ht, Amerik Latin, link=no
* pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...
, the
Spanish East Indies, and
Portuguese India
The State of India ( pt, Estado da Índia), also referred as the Portuguese State of India (''Estado Português da Índia'', EPI) or simply Portuguese India (), was a state of the Portuguese Empire founded six years after the discovery of a s ...
. Despite the name, it has never functioned as a learned society.
Founded in 1904 by philanthropist
Archer M. Huntington, the institution continues to operate at its original location in a 1908
Beaux Arts building on
Audubon Terrace in the
Washington Heights neighborhood of New York City. A second building, on the north side of the terrace, was added in 1930. Exterior sculpture in front of that building includes work by
Anna Hyatt Huntington and nine major reliefs by the Swiss-American sculptor
Berthold Nebel, a commission that took ten years to complete. The Hispanic Society complex was designated as a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places liste ...
in 2012. In 2021, the museum expanded into the former home of the Museum of the American Indian, adjacent to the museum's original building.
Collections
The museum contains more than 18,000 works in every medium, ranging from prehistoric times to the 20th century. The collection includes important paintings by
Diego Velázquez
Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (baptized June 6, 1599August 6, 1660) was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV of Spain and Portugal, and of the Spanish Golden Age. He was an individualistic artist of th ...
,
Francisco de Goya,
El Greco
Domḗnikos Theotokópoulos ( el, Δομήνικος Θεοτοκόπουλος ; 1 October 1541 7 April 1614), most widely known as El Greco ("The Greek"), was a Greek painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. "El ...
, and
Joaquín Sorolla, among others. It also includes sculpture and architectural elements, furniture and metalwork, ceramics and textiles.
The Sorolla Room, which was reinstalled in 2010, displays ''
Vision of Spain'', 14 massive paintings commissioned by Archer Huntington in 1911. Sorolla completed these works from 1913 to 1919. These paintings total more than 200 linear feet (61 m); they ring the large room and depict scenes from the regions of Spain.
The library contains more than 250,000 books; 200,000 documents; 175,000 photographs; and 15,000 prints. The rare books library maintains 15,000 books printed before 1700, including a first edition of ''
Don Quijote.'' It also holds the manuscript Black Book of Hours, ''Horae Beatae Virginis Mariae ad usum Romanum'' (circa 1458), one of only a handful of such works, and the enormous ''Map of the World'' (1526) by
Juan Vespucio.
The society has been described as "perhaps New York's most misunderstood institution", because it was established to concentrate on Old Spain and its culture in its colonies, as opposed to
Hispanic American
Hispanic and Latino Americans ( es, Estadounidenses hispanos y latinos; pt, Estadunidenses hispânicos e latinos) are Americans of Spanish and/or Latin American ancestry. More broadly, these demographics include all Americans who identify a ...
culture, despite its location in what has over time become a predominantly Hispanic (chiefly
Dominican) neighborhood. In 2012 it was suggested that the museum (although not the society) be renamed the "Archer M. Huntington Museum of Art" to clarify this distinction, but the name change was never pursued.
The creation of a historic museum
During the late 19th century in America, sentiments towards the country's relationship with Spain were negative. This is mainly due to the fact that during the 16th to 17th centuries, Spain had set its sights on dominating most of North and South America. Therefore, by the 18th century, the United States viewed Spain as an enemy that must be dealt with in order to move forward with American success in North America. During the 19th century, many areas once under Spanish control in North America were added to the territories of the United States. By the turn of the 19th century into the 20th century, Hispanic and Latin American studies became more pronounced in the scholarly world in the United States. Huntington's Hispanic Society of America was one of the leaders in the movement to bring Hispanic art to the attention of scholars in order to introduce the concept that Hispanic art was worthy of study. People started to realize that learning about Hispanic culture was important because it was such a large part of American history. Huntington had the foresight to see how important this kind of museum would be and established the museum in 1904.
Huntington worked diligently in collecting a vast amount of Hispanic art in order to put together the museum. In fact, he did not stop at art. He collected Hispanic heritage items, literature, and around 40,000 books which formed an enormous library used as a resource for scholars who study Hispanic history, literature, art, and culture to this day. Hence, his idea for the institution was not narrowly for showing paintings, sculptures, and historical artifacts, but more widely for it to be used as a center for research and scholarly study.
As for the design of the building, Huntington had a large role in the design and creation of the institution itself. The main building was based on the designs of Huntington's cousin, Charles P. Huntington. Huntington desired Audubon Terrace to become a complex of cultural institutions, which was partially realized. The chosen neoclassical design of the complex was designed to become the reputable institution that the Hispanic Society of America is today.
Expansion and renovations
In April 2015 the society announced the appointment of
Philippe de Montebello to chair the society's Board of Overseers and spearhead a major effort to roughly double the museum's size by renovating the vacant Beaux Arts building adjacent to the society's original museum building. It was formerly used by the
Museum of the American Indian, which had moved years before to the former
U.S. Custom House in lower Manhattan.
Beginning January 1, 2017, the museum was closed for extensive renovations, although the library was open on a limited basis by appointment only. The $15 million project will replace the building's roof and lighting. Originally scheduled to reopen in the fall of 2019, the main museum is still closed as of early 2022, but the new East Building Gallery, formerly the Museum of the American Indian, was opened in 2021 for rotating exhibitions.
While the museum was closed, many of its works were lent to other institutions. About 200 of the society's most important works were displayed from April through September 2017 at the
Museo del Prado
The Prado Museum ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It is widely considered to house one of the world's finest collections of European art, dating from th ...
in Madrid. The exhibit traveled to the
Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City from June through September 2018; the
Albuquerque Museum of Art and History, November 2018 through March 2019; the
Cincinnati Art Museum, October 2019 through January 2020; and the
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH), is an art museum located in the Houston Museum District of Houston, Texas. With the recent completion of an eight-year campus redevelopment project, including the opening of the Nancy and Rich Kinder Buil ...
from March to May 2020.
Admission to the museum has always been free, in accordance with Archer Huntington's trust. Due to financial difficulties, the society went to court in 2016 in order to be allowed to charge an admission fee to temporary exhibitions to be held in the museum's new facility, while keeping the main hall free. As of 2022, admission to the new galleries is free.
In 2020 the museum appointed Guillaume Kientz, former curator at the
Louvre
The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the '' Venus de Milo''. A central ...
and the
Kimbell Art Museum
The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, hosts an art collection as well as traveling art exhibitions, educational programs and an extensive research library. Its initial artwork came from the private collection of Kay and Velma Kimbell, wh ...
, as its new director.
Notable people
*
Georgiana Goddard King (1871–1939), Hispanist and medievalist
*
Mildred Stapley Byne (1875–1941), early curator of architecture and applied arts
*
Clara Louisa Penney (1888-1970), early curator of rare books and manuscripts, Society member
*
Florence Lewis May (1899-1988), early curator of textiles
*
Elizabeth du Gué Trapier (1893-1974), early curator of paintings and drawings
*
Alice Wilson Frothingham (1902-1976), early curator of ceramics
*
Beatrice Gilman Proske (1899-2002), early curator of sculpture
*
Eleanor Sherman Font
Eleanor Sherman Font (May 31, 1896-Sept. 8, 1982) was hired as prints curator at the Hispanic Society of America before expanding into iconography. She was one of six women chosen by Archer Milton Huntington to deepen their knowledge in art curati ...
(1896-1982), early curator of prints
*
Ruth Matilda Anderson
Ruth Matilda Anderson (September 8, 1893 – May 20, 1983) was an American photographer and author, known for her ethnographic photographs and studies of mainly rural life in early 20th-century Spain.
During her extended field trips to regions ...
(1893-1983), early curator of photographs and curator of costumes
See also
*
Hispanism
Hispanism (sometimes referred to as Hispanic studies or Spanish studies) is the study of the literature and culture of the Spanish-speaking world, principally that of Spain and Hispanic America. It can also entail studying Spanish language a ...
*
Hispanist
*
List of National Historic Landmarks in New York City
This article lists National Historic Landmarks in New York City, of which there are 116. One of the New York City sites is also a national monument, and there are two more national monuments in NYC as well. These are listed further below. It a ...
*
*
Beatrice Gilman Proske
References
Further reading
* (20 volumes, arranged alphabetically by author)
* (fulltext)
External links
*
A Collection in Context: The Hispanic Society of Americaby the Media Center for Art History, Columbia University (includes a virtual tour of the museum)
{{coord, 40.833521, -73.946514, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-NY, display=title
Washington Heights, Manhattan
Art museums established in 1904
Libraries in Manhattan
Society museums in New York (state)
Art museums and galleries in New York City
Museums in Manhattan
Latino museums in the United States
Hispanic and Latino American culture in New York City
Portuguese-American culture in New York City
Spanish-American culture in New York City
1904 establishments in New York City
National Historic Landmarks in Manhattan
Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan
Ethnic museums in New York City
Spanish art