Official experience hero image. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
Five iconic works from Madrid’s Museo Nacional del Prado come to life in an immersive, high-tech event. At Powerhouse Arts in Brooklyn, New York, Masterpieces: A Virtual Experience of the Museo del Prado invites visitors to step beyond the frames of historic paintings and explore their worlds in three dimensions. Developed by ACCIONA Cultura in exclusive collaboration with the museum, the exhibition debuts in the U.S. with a 30-minute journey through art, storytelling, and digital technology.
The experience takes visitors inside the paintings themselves. An original score and richly detailed 3D environments bring each work to life. The journey unfolds through the perspective of a fictional security guard on his final night shift before retirement. After decades spent watching over the collection, he shares his personal fascination with the artworks, offering an intimate alternative to a traditional museum tour.
The experience features a handful of paintings that span centuries of European art. Diego Velázquez’s Las Meninas (1656) offers a glimpse into the Spanish royal court, while The Sense of Sight (1617) by Peter Paul Rubens and Jan Brueghel explores the cultural importance of art through an elaborate allegory.
Visitors will also encounter Paolo Veronese’s Venus and Adonis (circa 1580), which draws on classical mythology to explore love and desire. Francisco de Goya’s Witches’ Sabbath (1820–1823) takes a darker turn, confronting fear and the human imagination. The journey also enters the fantastical world of Hieronymus Bosch’s The Garden of Earthly Delights (1490–1500).
Each virtual environment encourages visitors to look beyond the surface of these celebrated paintings. Figures and settings extend into three-dimensional space, transforming familiar compositions into immersive narrative worlds. The technology offers a new way to engage with the works without losing sight of their historical and artistic significance.
Several of the featured masterpieces rarely travel because of conservation requirements, while others cannot leave the Prado. This virtual experience offers a different entry point, letting audiences explore the paintings in a shared digital environment. By bringing these works into an unfamiliar setting, the experience invites visitors to consider how art can be interpreted and shared across generations.
Masterpieces: A Virtual Experience of the Museo del Prado is happening through December 20, 2026.
ACCIONA Cultura and Madrid’s Museo del Prado bring five celebrated paintings to life in an immersive virtual reality exhibition.
Guests in the Masterpieces VR experience. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
Detail view of the VR experience. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
Las Meninas experience detail. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
At Powerhouse Arts in Brooklyn, visitors can step inside works by Velázquez, Goya, and Bosch through 3D environments and storytelling.
Detail of visitors engaging with Bosch. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
Restorers within the VR experience. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
The Veronese Corridor within the VR experience. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
Las Meninas experience detail. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
Running through December 20, 2026, Masterpieces: A Virtual Experience of the Museo del Prado offers new access to artworks that rarely leave their original home.
Museum guard's office within the VR experience. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
Detail view of Hieronymus Bosch “Garden of Earthly Delights” in the VR experience. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
Experience entrance. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
“Bridge Hell” within the VR experience. (Photo: ACCIONA Cultura and Powerhouse Arts)
