Luis Graner

LUIS GRANER ARRUFÍ (Barcelona, 1863–1929).
“The Course…”.
Oil on canvas.
Signed in the lower right corner.
With a Sala Parés label on the back.
Measurements: 54 x 89 cm; 71 x 107 cm (frame).

Trained at the Escuela de La Lonja in Barcelona, he completed his studies in Paris on a scholarship from the Provincial Council in 1886. During these years, he won third prize at the World’s Fairs in Barcelona (1888) and Paris (1889). Having settled back in Barcelona in 1891, he held various exhibitions both in that city and in other Spanish and European cities, such as Madrid, Paris, Munich, and Düsseldorf. In 1904, he launched a project intended to be a synthesis of all the arts, and devoted himself to organizing “musical visions”—performances that combined poetry, music, film, and set design. Prominent figures from various disciplines collaborated with him on this project, including Antoni Gaudí, filmmaker Segundo de Chomon, poet Jacinto Verdaguer, and musician Joan Lambert. After his period of producing shows and recitals came to an end, he moved to the Americas, where he returned to painting. He lived and exhibited his work in Havana, São Paulo, Montevideo, San Francisco, and New York. He returned to Barcelona in 1929. His work is represented at the MACBA, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, and the Balaguer Museum in Vilanova i la Geltrú, among other Spanish and international institutions, as well as in important private Catalan collections.