Saura, Antonio | Colección

20th Century. Spanish

An artist, poet, theorist and critic, Antonio Saura is one of the major innovators in Spanish XXth century art. A self-taught artist, during a long convalescence in his youth he was driven by sheer vital necessity to take up painting and would eventually become one of the maximum exponents of

Informalism

Term coined by the French art critic Michel Tapié (under the name of art informel) to define the art movement that covers a whole range of abstract and gestural trends that emerged in Europe in the 1940s in parallel with the development of

Abstract Expressionism

in America. The movement is defined by a non-figurative language that lends a very significant role to the use of materials. The defining moment for Informalismo in Spain was in the 1950s, with a generation of artists whose languages embraced both European Art Informel and American

Abstract Expressionism

. These included, among others, Antoni Tàpies (1923-2012), Josep Guinovart (1927-2007), August Puig (1929-1999), Antonio Saura (1930-1998), Manolo Millares (1926-1972) and Rafael Canogar (1935).

in Spain.

His first steps in the field of creation go back to 1943, when he took up painting and became immersed in writing. In 1950 he had his first solo exhibition at Sala Libros, in Zaragoza, presenting experimental works that gravitated around Surrealism but from a cosmic and dreamlike angle. In 1951 Saura visited Paris briefly and returned there three years later, this time staying for a whole year, during which he engaged in the activities of the surrealist group. He also organised group exhibitions and entered Parisian avant-garde circles. This led to a shift in his artistic language, which gradually moved towards gestural abstraction. In 1957 he had his first solo show in Paris and took part in the foundation of El Paso group in Spain, that he would direct until its disbandment in 1960. During that period, his informalista aesthetic turned into expressionist figuration, although without losing the power and gesturality of his earlier works. The subject matters he addressed at the time were to stay with him for the rest of his career: women, crucifixions, crowds and imaginary portraits, which transcended a satirical intent to engage in a world of primeval, violent images imbued with primal energy.

In 1958, Saura took part, together with other major figures of Spanish abstraction, at the 29th Venice Biennale. The following year marked the beginning of his prolific graphic output. Also around this time, he illustrated important literary works such as Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes, El criticón by Baltasar Gracián, 1984 by George Orwell and Tres visions, by Francisco de Quevedo.

In 1967 Saura settled in Paris, exhibiting regularly at the Stadler and Lelong galleries. This was a time of experimentation with new themes and painterly languages that led to the creation of seminal series like Woman-Armchair, Imaginary Portraits, Goya’s Dog and Imaginary Portrait of Goya. Throughout the following decade his works were seen in major exhibitions in Europe, the USA and Latin America. In the 1970s he temporarily stopped painting on canvas and devoted himself to writing, drawing and painting on paper. He also published his writings and created stage designs for theatre, ballet and opera.

In 1997, a year before he died, he was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Castilla-La Mancha. Besides this distinction, throughout his career he received, among other recognitions, the Guggenheim Prize (1960), the Aragón Arts Award (1994), Spain’s Fine Arts Gold Medal (1982) and his appointment as Chevalier of Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France (1981). Saura’s works are in the collections of major institutions worldwide, including, among others, Museo de Arte Abstracto Español in Cuenca, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid, and MoMA and Metropolitan Museum, both in New York.