Little sleeping prince

Country: Spain

Manufactory: Lladro

Dare of establishment: 1997

Sculptor: Antonio Ramos

Size (cm): 44*31

Limited Series

Porcelain Story

Just returned from a short but wonderful trip to Spain. In the largest city of the Basque Country, Bilbao (it turned out that it is not even the capital of the province), we visited the branch of the Guggenheim Museum, which changed the life of an entire industrial region. Formerly depressive and neglected, gloomy and even unhealthy for local residents. And now beautiful, prosperous, successful.

People in Bilbao live modestly and cleanly. Not rich, but worthy. Very fond of children and dogs. And they also love it very much ... pork rinds with beer! Amazing people - kind and hardworking. They know how to enjoy life and share this joy with others.

The building of the Guggenheim Museum was impressive. Highly. Exposure is not. Well, it's an amateur. In the PinchukArt Center in Kyiv, the exposition is often richer and more interesting. In any case, it is not even worth comparing the expositions of the Guggenheim museums in Bilbao and New York, where we have been before.

In Valencia and Barcelona, ??this time we managed to visit museums and enjoy the acquaintance with new Lladro products. Some seemed interesting, but nothing more. The new management of the famous manufactory in the creation of works has chosen to satisfy the tastes of lovers of rich, bright and often tasteless interiors. They have a right. Especially if the "rich Pinocchios" are ready to pay big money not for real ("for centuries") art, but for something that could well decorate a prestigious cigar club.

I do not impose my attitude to this on anyone. But I prefer porcelain, the beauty of which will remain relevant even after hundreds of years.

In Barcelona, ??of course, we visited the port and near the unusually beautiful buildings of the architect Gaudi, whose life I once spoke about in our column in connection with the presentation of a porcelain composition related to the theme of his work. On the Las Ramblas we visited a porcelain shop, where over the years I have found many amazing rare works. This time, alas, nothing like that happened.

But I remembered how one day it was in this Barcelona shop (which, by the way, has been "held" for many years by members of one dynasty of immigrants from India) that I bought this composition. It is beautiful. And the plot, and cute subtle details, and a warm good mood that seems to emanate from this work.