Ismael de la Serna

ISMAEL DE LA SERNA (Guadix, Granada, 1898 - Paris, 1968).
"Fantastic scene".
Ink and graphite on paper.
Signed at the bottom.
Measurements: 30.5 × 23 cm.; 50 × 42 cm. with frame.

In this scene, of agile drawing, two hybrid figures, between the human and the animal, are linked in an ambiguous action that oscillates between the embrace, the fight and the theatrical representation. The zoomorphic faces, with biting and almost grotesque gestures, introduce a fantastic and satirical dimension that is very close to the artist's imagination.

The work stands out for the security of the stroke and for the use of lines as a resource of volume, shadow and dramatic tension. The scene participates in a universe close to the surrealism in which De la Serna moved, a visual fable in which the figure becomes mask, symbol and apparition.

Ismael de la Serna was an artist linked to the School of Paris. After training in Granada and coming into contact with Federico García Lorca and Manuel de Falla, he settled in Paris in the 1920s, where he developed a work close to cubism, surrealism and poetic figuration. His production is represented in institutions such as the Reina Sofia Museum, the Andalusian Center of Contemporary Art and the Museum of Fine Arts of Granada.