Juan Alaminos

JUAN ALAMINOS (Baeza, Jaén, second half of the XIX century).
"Bullfighting scene".
Charcoal drawing.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 29 x 44,5 cm; 55 x 70,5 cm (frame).

Juan Alaminos is a painter practically unknown to art historians. He was born in Baeza, province of Jaén, at an unknown date, apparently in the second half of the 19th century. Nor has it been possible to determine his date of death. He received his first studies in his hometown, and later moved to Madrid as a student of the Escuela Superior de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado. From the teachings imparted by this center he obtained so much profit that he participated, while still a student of this institution, in different painting exhibitions. He was also a member of the Círculo de Bellas Artes de Madrid. Throughout his life he took part in various exhibitions and artistic competitions, such as the National Exhibition of Fine Arts of 1871, in which he participated with a study from life and a portrait of King Amadeo. In the 1876 edition he presented a long list of paintings: "Portrait", "The load of dead horses, after the bullfight", "A stable" and "Episode of Don Quixote". As a cartoonist, he is also known for illustrations published in various magazines of the time, such as "El gorro frigio", "La vida madrileña" and "La flaca". He also cultivated the genre of watercolor, as proof of which we have news of a large collection representing bullfights.