Felipe Santamans Year

FELIPE SANTAMANS AÑO, (Guadasuar, Valencia, 1951)
"The Gypsy".
Pastel on cardboard.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 100 x 71 cm; 104 x 75 cm (frame).

Painter of figures, portraits, landscapes, interiors and still lifes, Felipe Santamans dominates to the perfection both the oil and the pastel, and in fact he is considered one of the best current pastelists of Spain. His work shows continuity with classical styles, within a personal renovation. His work is therefore classical in style, although it is not exempt from certain impressionist traits, mainly evident in his landscapes. His are intimate images, rich in expressiveness, dominated by warm tones and a subtle light work, stripped of all accessory ornaments, natural and simple paintings in which form is often an excuse to play with light and color. A precocious painter, Santamans began to study art under the tutelage of some of the most important painters of his region, and at the age of fourteen he was working with the famous pastelist Benjamin Suria. He began his formal training at the Barrera Academy in Valencia, and continued at the School of Fine Arts and the Fuster Academy. In 1968 he met the painter José Espert, whom he considers his true master. The following year he made his debut in a group exhibition, and soon left oil painting aside to focus on pastels, which fascinated him because of the transparency and brightness of their colors, as well as the degree of subtlety they allow in the play of light and shadow. He is currently represented in collections in Europe, South America and the United States.