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Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel García Márquez

Mónica Boixeda

If we were going to talk about one of the most influential contemporary writers, we would no doubt have to mention Gabriel García Márquez, because the winner of the Nobel Prize for literature is no less than a human factory of novels, stories, drama, and all things related to the written word. Gabriel García Márquez is from Columbia, and his work is work is a key representative for all Latin American literature, since it is thanks to him that it has been able to get the global recognition it deserves. He was born in Aracataca in 1927, and today, in 2011, at the age of 84, he continues to be a passionate devotee of books and all text in general. His voice is heard, and respected the world over, and 100 Years of Solitude, the novel for which he won the Nobel Prize, has been translated into 35 languages, cementing him worldwide as one of the most remarkable, and brilliant writers of all time. Márquez also created a literary style and genre, Magical Realism, but it is only when you read one of his novels do you truly understand the concept. He has, like many of his contemporaries, spent much of life moving from city to city, but Paris marked him in a particularly special way. He lived there during 1956, in a small hotel, spending most of his days shut away indoors writing. Chronicle of a Death Foretold is magnificent piece of work, which fictionalises a true story passed onto Márquez in 1951, which he remembered until 1981 when he sat down to write the novel. Márquez, in...

The Descent by Caravaggio in Madrid

Mónica Boixeda

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, famous throughout the world and known simply as Caravaggio, was born in Milan and is one of the most important painters of the history of art, as well as one of the promoters of Baroque art. “The Descent”, one of his many paintings, is for the first time in Spain and will be on exhibition until the 18th of September at Prado Museum in Madrid. The painting is presented within the framework of exhibition “The Word made image- Paintings of Christ at the Prado Museum”; this exhibition will be composed of different works on display in the various museum galleries throughout the year. “The Descent” is a unique and stunning painting that has three meters high and two wide. Here you can see Nicodemus and John carrying the body of Jesus Christ. On the back there is Mary Magdalene, who is drying her tears with a handkerchief with her head down in shame and true sadness. “The Descent” is not the only painting that on display. There are in total 14 religion pieces, but without a doubt, the Caravaggio’s one will attract the higher amount of people throughout the months of exposure. The story of the artist is quite cruel, he was born in 1573 and his parents passed away when he was just a child, after many problems, he managed to enter to one of the most important workshops, called Cavalier D´Arpino, in the year ´94. Eight months later, with a lot more experience and a life on track, he opened his own workshop. From that time Cardinal del Monte helped him in the...