Laureano Barrau

LAUREANO BARRAU BUÑOL (Barcelona, 1864 - Santa Eulària des Riu, Ibiza, 1957).
"Waterwoman".
Charcoal on paper.
Signed in the lower left corner.
Measurements: 39,5 x 25,5 cm; 61 x 48 cm (frame).

Trained at the School of Fine Arts of Barcelona and disciple of Jean-Léon Gérôme in Paris, Barrau began his career with large canvases of historical themes that earned him recognition in the European Salons, but his style reached maturity when he freed himself from academic rigidity in search of pure light. In 1911 he moved to Ibiza, settling permanently in Puig de Missa (Santa Eulalia), where his painting was transformed into an explosion of luminosity and transparencies focused on coastal landscapes, market scenes and popular Ibizan types. His work stands out for his masterful handling of the color white and the reflections of the sun on the sea, which has led him to be compared to Sorolla for his ability to capture the luminous instant, although with his own sensibility that combines social realism with a poetic and serene vision of Mediterranean life. Currently, his legacy can be visited in his House-Museum in Santa Eulalia del Río, where a large part of the work he produced during his decades of stay on the island is preserved.