Lluís Bru

LLUIS BRU I SALELLES (Ondara, Alicante, 1868 - Barcelona, 1952).
Modernist gardener, ca. 1918-1925.
Tesserae.
Measurements: 135 x 47 x 47 cm.

Planter designed by Lluís Bru for the Palau de la Música in Barcelona, made of ceramic and decorated with green and white tesserae completely covering the exterior, forming a mosaic that drinks directly from the influence of Gaudí, although it shows a taste closer to classicism. The structure is simple, clear and balanced, with four feet in the form of a curly scroll towards the bottom, a column-shaped shaft with a molded band at mid-height and two molded bulls above to delimit the capital, and finally a vessel inspired by the ancient classical vase, ovoid, broad-shouldered and with a prominent straight mouth. The green tesserae, in two tones, form scrolls and fretwork that stand out against the background of white tesserae. Each of the small tesserae, mostly square in shape, are arranged in an orderly manner, applied with impeccable craftsmanship.
A modernist ceramist and set designer, son and grandson of painters, Lluís Bru demonstrated his artistic skills as a draughtsman from an early age. He developed his career in Barcelona, working for great figures of the time such as Domènech i Montaner, from whom he received his first commissions around 1900, for the creation of mosaics. He also composed scenographies for the Gran Teatro del Liceu (1901), and decorations for the Palau de la Música. Among the first we can highlight the scenographic designs for the opera "Hansel and Gretel", of which two drawings are preserved in the Municipal Archives of Esplugues de Llobregat. He was also an important author of mosaics, a technique he learned during a stay in Venice in 1904. In fact, he specialized in Roman, Venetian and ceramic mosaics, for pavements and mural decoration, and it is in this discipline where his best and most extensive work can be found. Bru collaborated as a ceramic designer for the Pujol i Bausis factory in Esplugues, with special emphasis on his wainscots and details on the facades of modernist houses. He also participated in designing industrial advertising posters in Badalona, religious decoration with Roman mosaics in pavements and apses, and in large modernist works in which he worked alone or in collaboration with Mario Maragliano and Eliseu Querol: Lleó Morera house, Pere Mata Institute and the Hospital de la Santa Cruz y San Pablo (last exterior panels, 1923). The latter is, together with the Palau de la Música Catalana, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In the Palau de la Música, Bru did all the decoration of mosaics and trencadís, elements that, together with the stained glass windows of Antoni Rigalt, give personality to the building. Highly recognized in his time, he won a medal at the 1911 Barcelona International Art Exhibition, for a fireplace with the figure of St. George made in collaboration with Josep Triadó, and the gold medal at the International Exhibition of Decorative Arts in Paris in 1925. He also participated in other important exhibitions such as the 1918 Barcelona Exhibition of Decorative Arts. Currently his decorations are preserved "in situ" in Barcelona and other Catalan towns, as well as in Madrid, Valencia and Palma de Mallorca.