Joaquín Sorolla was a Valencian painter. He entered history as a representative of post-impressionism. Thanks to his great talent, he left an important mark on Spanish art.
Today in our blog we want to tell you about Joaquín Sorolla, one of the most famous painters in Spain. This artist is famous for his representative works of Spanish culture and the daily life of his time. His most outstanding works belong to the movement of post-impressionism. In addition, we must highlight the portrait as its most successful genre.
Biography
Joaquín Sorolla was born in 1863 in Valencia and died at the age of 60 in Cercedilla. With only 2 years he was orphaned and together with his sister was welcomed by his uncles. Joaquin’s uncle tried to teach him the trade of locksmith but the boy dreamed of being a painter.
Therefore, he ended up studying drawing at the School of Artisans of Valencia. After finishing it, he participated in multiple competitions of fine arts. Thanks to his obstinacy he got a scholarship to study in Rome. At that time he was generally devoted to historical painting.
However, after the trip to Paris he met impressionism that marked his style for life. At that time Joaquín had already moved to Madrid with his wife. The painter developed his own style called “luminismo”. He painted in the open air playing with natural light and reflecting everyday scenes in his paintings.
Later, he had a lot of success in America with his special assignment dedicated to “The Regions of Spain”. Meanwhile, he lived in Madrid and worked as a teacher at the School of Fine Arts. Unfortunately, in 1920 he suffered a disease that prevented him from painting. Three years later he died in his summer residence.
Joaquín Sorolla and Valencia
Despite his travels and removals, Joaquín Sorolla kept love for his land. Dedicated multiple paintings to the Valencian landscapes. After its success in Madrid, Valencia has given its name to a street. In addition, its name currently carries one of two train stations in Valencia.
As a historically curious fact we must note the friendship of Joaquín Sorolla with Blasco Ibáñez. The famous Valencian writer had some influence on his friend. Thanks to this, some works of Sorolla were born where he criticized society.
Currently, most of Sorolla’s works are in the Sorolla Museum and the Prada Museum in Madrid. However, Valencia has a part of its artistic heritage. For example, in the Museum of Fine Arts San Pío V contains more than 40 paintings by the artist. Also, in Valencia there are his home nactalicia, his first workshop and many other sites of interest. In the same way, the remains of the artist are in the General cemetery of Valencia.
We hope that our article encourages you to meet the great painter Joaquín Sorolla. In our Spanish courses we name him as one of the most famous people of Valencian origin. So, if you do not know what to do in Valencia, you can make a route through the places related to this great artist 😉
