Benjamin Palencia

BENJAMÍN PALENCIA (Barrax, Albacete, 1894 - Madrid, 1980).
"Rama de limonero" (Lemon tree branch), 1970s.
Ink on paper.
Attached certificate of authenticity issued by the Benjamín Palencia Archive.
Signed with the artist's seal.
Measurements: 34 x 24 cm.
Benjamín Palencia's facet as a draftsman was fundamental in the development of his artistic language, since drawing constituted the basis of his plastic research and his artistic vision as he approached numerous themes. Through a free and expressive line, Palencia explored forms, rhythms and structures that he later transferred to his painting, turning drawing into a space for experimentation.
Benjamín Palencia, founder of the Vallecas School together with sculptor Alberto Sánchez, was a key figure in the renovation of the Castilian landscape, heir to the poetics of the Generation of '98. Self-taught through his studio at the Prado Museum, he rejected traditional academic teaching. After his contact with the avant-garde in Paris and with artists such as Picasso and Miró, he incorporated surrealist elements and techniques such as collage into his work. Upon his return to Madrid, he consolidated a personal aesthetic that fused tradition and modernity, especially through landscape. After the Civil War, his painting evolved towards a more intense use of color, close to Fauvism, always keeping the rural Castilian world as the central axis. Recognized in important national exhibitions, in 1943 he obtained the first medal in the National Exhibition of Fine Arts and in 1944 he was selected to participate in the Salón de los Once de Eugenio D'Ors in Madrid. The following year he is awarded the medal of honor at the National Exhibition, although he renounces it to facilitate its concession to José Gutiérrez Solana.