José Caballero

JOSÉ CABALLERO (Huelva, 1915 – Madrid, 1991).
“Through the Confused Splendor,” 1989–1990.
Gouache on sorbet paper.
It bears an informational label on the reverse from Afinsart, the Art Department of Afinsa.
The paper shows slight damage.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 55 x 49 cm; 80 x 71 cm (frame).
José Caballero trained at the San Fernando School of Fine Arts and in the studio of Daniel Vázquez Díaz. In 1935, García Lorca recruited him to the “La Barraca” University Theater, where he contributed various drawings for the company’s productions, in addition to designing the sets for the play “The Story of a Soldier” at the Residencia de Estudiantes. For Caballero, the year 1935 marked a creative period closely linked to Spanish Surrealism. Together with Adriano del Valle, he created three posters for the Ateneo de Sevilla and illustrated poems by García Lorca and Neruda. He also contributed to avant-garde magazines such as “Cruz y Raya,” “Noroeste,” and “Línea y Caballo Verde para la poesía.” He likewise participated in the First Drawing Fair of the Iberian Society of Artists. In 1949, he achieved success thanks to his painting for the Spanish Tourist Office and his illustrations for poetry books, and the following year he was invited to the Venice Biennale. That same year, 1950, he held his first major solo exhibition in Madrid, at the Clan Gallery. From that point on, he became interested in Expressionism, exhibiting in 1953 at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Madrid. Among his numerous awards, the National Prize for the Visual Arts and the Medal for Artistic Merit from the Madrid City Council are particularly noteworthy. His work is represented in the Reina Sofía Museum in Madrid, the Patio Herreriano in Valladolid, the Mapfre, Telefónica, and Juan March Foundations, the Chase Manhattan Bank Collection in New York, the Rufino Tamayo Museum in Mexico City, the Museum of the Center for Aesthetic Research in Turin, the National Gallery of Foreign Art in Sofia, and the Texas Memorial Museum, among other Spanish and international centers and institutions.