There is something about centenary stores that traps us. It is probably the confluence of different factors, such as the fact that they are part of the memory of a city -or, more specifically, of a neighborhood- and, therefore, of its citizens and neighbors; the amazement -and maybe a certain sense of pride- at their survival over time in increasingly impersonal cities and, undoubtedly, the treatment given by those who run them. All this fits within four walls and all this is paid tribute to in a new free exhibition that opened this Wednesday.
As other exhibitions that have previously been shown in the capital -with a great reception by the public, by the way, like this one by Paco Graco-, the exhibition Escaparates de Madrid: un viaje artístico por los comercios centenarios pays tribute to these mythical establishments at the Centro Cultural Clara del Rey (Calle de Amaniel, 29).
The exhibition is made up of a selection of 62 drawings of stores in the Centro district painted over four years by a group of urban artists. However, their commitment to preserving the memory of Madrid through art has led them to portray, until April 2024, a total of 186 Madrid businesses spread throughout the different districts of the city.
Among these sixty businesses are, for example, the Posada de la Villa in Cava Baja (1642), the San Ginés bookstore (1650), the Sobrino de Botín restaurant in Cuchilleros street (1725), El Botijo in Toledo street (1754) and the Antonio Sánchez tavern, in Mesón de Paredes (1768).
Also such well-known names as the restaurants Casa Alberto, Casa Ciriaco and Casa Labra, and the pastry shops El Riojano, Horno San Onofre and La Duquesita.
Opening hours of the exhibition of centenary stores
The exhibition can be visited until March 1, 2025 from Monday to Saturday from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm.