On July 10 of this year the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid began the process to restore the famous work entitled Paradise by Renaissance artist Tintoretto (1518-1594). An oil on canvas, the painting was created in 1588 and measures 168.5 × 494 cm (66.3 × 194.5 in).
With the goal of involving the museum's visiting public, the staff in charge of the restoration department decided to perform the restoration publicly in the central hall. It is the first time that this process is performed at the museum and responds to the celebrations of the Museum's 20 years of existence and the financial support of Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
The painting shows signs of deterioration caused by the passing of time. The restoration process will not be completed until September 2, 2012. The hall has been decorated with infrared macro-photographs and radiographies taken to recreate and to identify the aspects behind the work.
The painting was created by the Italian artist as a preliminary sketch for a work intended to replace the main wall in the hall of the Great Council of the Ducal Palace in Venice—destroyed in a fire in 1557. Tintoretto participated with this work in a call whose theme was the Glory and Coronation of the Virgin.