Eastern culture has directly influenced European society, something that can be seen by taking a quick look at social networks. From cultural products to its organizational philosophy. However, for a small town in the Sierra de Madrid to be baptized as the Osaka of Madrid may seem strange to say the least.
The truth is that the landscape here does not have imposing skyscrapers, there are no neon signs or the cherry blossom trees so emblematic of the Japanese country. There are many things why no one would think of this town as one of the most iconic cities in Japan, but in Puebla de la Sierra Yes, there are ties with Osaka, its art and its culture. Here your 99 inhabitants Among traditional mountain houses and centuries-old oak trees, they preserve the studio of Federico Eguía, responsible for this project that has had international repercussions.
At first the idea arose of uniting art with nature, nothing to do with Japanese culture, but with a set of outdoor sculptures. He Valley of Dreams was born as a project in 1998: “As this is an altruistic initiative, we have been developing it little by little, through biennials in which national and international artists have participated. Currently, We have 120 works distributed along the route“, comments about the Eguía project.
Little by little the place was filled with works made by national and international artists such as Anne Cecile, Lucía Loren, Antonio Garza, Moisés Gil or Joaquín Manzano. The ideology of this exhibition is based on these works being enjoyed by tourists in the way they see fit: touching them, stepping on them or sitting on them. This special valley was declared in 2005 Biosphere Reserve by UNESCObut the story does not end with an exhibition abroad.
This was the beginning of a project that would become the Museum of Contemporary Japanese Painting years later. It was in 2011 when Eguía, who had contacts with the Japanese country, raised the idea of doing a cultural exchange. In this way his collaboration with the Reijinsha entitywhich, according to its website, serves “as a bridge between society and the art world and supports the cultural development of the world.”
Every year they donate works and, although some cannot be exhibited due to limited space, they already have a collection of 165 works. In addition, every two years a conference is organized in which authors are invited to get to know Puebla de la Sierra. Since then, this corner of the Sierra de Madrid has received many visitors from Japan.
How to get to Puebla de la Sierra
Take the A-1 (Northern Highway) towards Burgos. At the height of La Cabrera, exit through exit 60 and take the road M-127 heading towards El Berrueco and Robledillo de la Jara. From there, continue along the M-130which runs through a beautiful mountain landscape, passing through several towns of the Sierra del Rincón. The road is narrow and curvy, but offers spectacular views of the natural surroundings. The entire journey lasts approximately an hour and a half and covers about 100 kilometers from the center of Madrid.
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