Antonio Medina

ANTONIO MEDINA SERRANO (Madrid, 1944).
"Arabian souk".
Watercolor on paper.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 35 x 30 cm; 60 x 76 cm (frame).

View of an oriental souk, animated by figures, stalls, whitewashed architecture and domes that evoke a North African atmosphere. The composition is resolved with a luminous and agile watercolor, with loose brushstrokes, in which the warm tones of ochers, earths and pinks predominate, contrasted with the clean blue of the sky.

The scene stands out for its narrative sense and for the vividness with which the artist recreates the daily activity of the market: vendors, passers-by, animals and objects arranged in the foreground contribute to build an image rich in details, without losing freshness and spontaneity.

Antonio Medina trained at the School of Ceramics, with José María Salgas and as a free student at the School of Fine Arts of San Fernando. His work as a restorer of 19th century genre painting marked his interest in this genre, which he developed with a personal language influenced by Fortuny, Madrazo and Jiménez de Aranda. Since his first individual exhibition in 1983, he has cultivated genre scenes, landscapes, portraits and watercolors, standing out for his sure stroke, bright colors and evocative force. He is mainly represented in private collections.