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DALLAS (SMU) - The Meadows Museum has announced the appointment of Dr. Patricia Manzano Rodríguez to the position of curator. Manzano, who has been serving as the museum’s Mellon Curatorial Fellow since November 2023, is a scholar of 17th-century Spanish painting and has been conducting research on the museum’s paintings by Diego Velázquez and other baroque artists, as well as contributing to the museum’s exhibitions and publications; she will begin her new role as curator on September 1, 2024.

Linda P. and William A. Custard Director of the Meadows Museum and Centennial Chair in the Meadows School of Arts Amanda W. Dotseth stated, “I am delighted to announce that Dr. Manzano Rodríguez has been appointed curator of the Meadows Museum. She brings to the post an impressive international scholarly track record, and a passion for Spanish art with a specialty in early-modern painting. We know from her time as Mellon Curatorial Fellow that she brings with her a strong curatorial eye. We look forward to seeing her expand her efforts to research the Meadows permanent collection and acquisitions, organize and present exhibitions, and develop partnerships with colleagues and institutions in the US, Spain, and beyond.”

Photo by Guy Rogers III

Patricia Manzano Rodríguez completed her doctorate in art and architecture at the School of Modern Languages and Cultures at Durham University (UK) in 2023, with a thesis on the Spanish painter Juan Bautista Martínez del Mazo, student and son-in-law of Diego Velázquez. Her research on Mazo, including the most complete catalogue of his works to date, provides a new perspective on Velázquez and his workshop. Manzano also completed her M.A. in Contemporary Art History and Visual Culture at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía and Universidad Complutense de Madrid, as well as her B.A. in History of Art at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, First Class. Prior to her appointment as a Mellon Curatorial Fellow, Manzano was also a FormARTE Fellow at Museo de América in Madrid.

“I am honored to join the Meadows Museum as its new curator. The museum's dedication to the study and celebration of Spanish art is extraordinary, and I am excited to contribute to its continued growth and success,” said Manzano of her new role. “The Meadows has a rich history of fostering scholarly excellence, and I am thrilled to keep working with the talented team here to build on this legacy and explore new opportunities for innovation and collaboration.”

Manzano is widely recognized for her scholarship and has received a number of awards and grants, including the 2022 Juan Facundo Riaño Essay Medal, following which she was invited by the Museo Nacional del Prado to present at their Programa Joven initiative. Previously at Durham University, she supported the development of the online exhibition Hispanic Art in British Regional Collections: History, Display, Research.

About the Meadows Museum

The Meadows Museum is the leading U.S. institution focused on studying and presenting the art of Spain. In 1962, Dallas businessman and philanthropist Algur H. Meadows donated his private collection of Spanish paintings and funds to start a museum at ÃÛÌÒ½´Methodist University. The museum opened to the public in 1965, marking the first step in fulfilling Meadows’s vision to create “a small Prado for Texas.” Today, the Meadows is home to one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of Spanish art outside of Spain. The collection spans from the 10th to the 21st centuries and includes medieval objects, Renaissance and Baroque sculptures, and major paintings by Golden Age and modern masters.