Joel Bowman with today’s Note From the End of the World: Buenos Aires, Argentina…
When Matías Errazúriz married Josefina de Alvear, the granddaughter of Independence-era statesman, Carlos María de Alvear, at the turn of the 20th Century, the high-society couple were not going to live just anywhere.
Sra. Errazúriz would need a mansion as befitted her status, filled with lavish antiques and other exquisite objets d'art, collected from around the world. And so, in 1911, the couple commissioned the French architect, René Sergent, to design a neoclassical palace along the city’s grand boulevard, Avenida del Libertador.
Complete with a Winter Garden, a Grand Ballroom and a Dining Hall inspired by none other than the Palace of Versailles (because, why not?), the residence strikes an imposing silhouette against the late afternoon fall skies.
So too the street-facing façade, complete with four Corinthian columns and a pediment featuring statues in classical scenes.
At the behest of her children, Sra. Errazúriz bequeathed the property to the Argentine government on her death, in 1935… right in time for the military strongman, Juan Perón, to rise to power and usher in the darkest days in Argentina’s long and storied history.
Today, the palace serves as the Museo Nacional de Arte Decorativo (National Museum of Decorative Arts.) You can see in the entrance hall (the last room at the very end of the video) a life size portrait of Sra. Errazúriz (in the red gown) by the Spanish painter Joaquín Sorolla (1863–1923). From her perch on the wall, she watches over the visitors, seeing the rise and fall… and rise again… of her country’s vast fortunes…
And now for your Notes From the End of the Week…
Final Notes…
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Meanwhile, we’re off for a leisurely stroll through the city’s northern suburbs before a classic Sunday asado. Whatever you’re up to this weekend, we trust you’re in good cheer and even better company.
Stay tuned for more Notes From the End of the World…
Cheers,
Joel Bowman
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