The Royal Academy’s first big show of 2023 is unusual. As well as presenting an impressive collection from Spain and the Hispanic world (around 150 items covering over 4,000 years, including paintings, sculptures, maps, books and manuscripts), it also tells the story of the collection’s source – the Hispanic Society.
The Society’s founder, Archer M Huntington, was born in 1870 to a wealthy American railroad magnate. His parents took him on extended trips to Europe where he discovered the delights of art in the museums of London and Paris.
These travels did not include Spain, but the young Huntington quickly developed his own private passion when, at the age of 12, he bought a book about Spanish gypsies. He never looked back.
