Josep Maria Tamburini

JOSEP MARÍA TAMBURINI DALMAU (Barcelona, 1856–1932).
"Mother and Daughter."
Charcoal on paper.
Signed in the lower left corner.
Measurements: 32.5 x 37.5 cm; 49.5 x 55.5 cm (frame).

A painter, art critic, and leading figure of Catalan Modernism, Tamburini began his training at the Escuela de La Lonja in Barcelona, later completing his studies in Paris with L. Bonnat and in Rome. He contributed as an illustrator, art critic, and poet to the magazine “L’Avenç,” one of the most prominent art publications in Catalonia at the turn of the century. He also wrote for “La Vanguardia.” As a painter, he began his career in history painting and anecdotal realism, later evolving toward Symbolism, strongly influenced by English Pre-Raphaelite art. He gained recognition as early as 1888, the year he won a silver medal at the Barcelona World’s Fair. He continued to participate in official exhibitions in Barcelona and Madrid, and was once again honored at the Barcelona Exhibition in 1898, where he received the Queen Regent’s Special Prize. In 1911, he received the King and Queen of Spain Prize. By this time a mature painter, he worked on serene, fantastical subjects, rendered in great detail and with a focus on fine artistry, as well as religious themes and some portraits. He was also a member of the Barcelona Museum Board, a councilor of the Academy of Fine Arts, a professor at the La Lonja School, and a co-founder of the Artistic and Literary Society of Catalonia (1911). His works are held at MACBA, the National Art Museum and Library of Catalonia, the Royal Academy of Sant Jordi, the Casa Lis Museum in Salamanca, and the Fine Arts Museums of Valencia and Seville, as well as in numerous private collections.