Josep Maria Xiró

JOSEP MARIA XIRÓ I TALTABULL (Barcelona, 1878–1937).
Untitled.
Pencil on paper.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 17 x 26 cm; 22.5 x 32.5 cm (frame).
Josep Maria Xiró Taltabull was one of the leading figures of Catalan Symbolism in the early 20th century. Trained at the Trias Academy in Barcelona and a student of Modest Urgell, he also completed his studies at the La Llotja School, where he developed a solid academic foundation and a deep interest in landscape painting and the Symbolist tradition. In his early years, he shared a studio with the painter Lluís Graner and was a member of the Cercle Artístic de Sant Lluc, an institution that had a decisive influence on the spiritual and literary orientation of his early work. His artistic debut took place at the 1896 Barcelona Fine Arts Exhibition with the work *Trànsit*, inspired by a poem by Àngel Guimerà. During this period, he cultivated a form of symbolism with mystical and literary overtones that soon evolved into an epic and philosophical language, strongly influenced by the Germanic symbolism of Arnold Böcklin and Franz von Stuck, as well as by the Wagnerian atmosphere that characterized Catalan culture in the early 20th century. In 1904, he illustrated the edition of Jacint Verdaguer’s *L’Atlàntida*, considered one of the pinnacles of Catalan Symbolist illustration.
Between 1907 and 1914, he lived in Paris, where he was highly active as a poster artist and painter. He exhibited regularly at the Salon des Indépendants, as well as at the Salon des Orientalistes. Throughout his career, he exhibited repeatedly at the historic Sala Parés in Barcelona. At the 1911 Barcelona International Art Exhibition, he won a First Medal and also participated regularly in the National Fine Arts Exhibitions in Madrid and the Official Exhibitions in Barcelona. In the final stage of his career, he received major commissions for mural paintings.