Rafael Durancamps

RAFAEL DURANCAMPS (1891 – Barcelona, 1979)
Self-Portrait.
Pencil and watercolor on paper.
Signed, titled, and dated in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 16.5 x 11 cm; 30.5 x 25 cm (frame)
Rafael Durancamps’s first exhibition took place in Barcelona in 1917 at the Galerías Layetanas. In 1921, he traveled to Paris. Upon his return to Sabadell, he participated in various competitions, winning major awards such as the Masriera Medal, and began selling his work to leading collectors. This was a period marked by an affinity for Impressionism, but also by the influence of Zurbarán, El Greco, and Venetian Colorism. In 1926, he returned to Paris and held exhibitions at the Zak Gallery, where he achieved considerable success, also showing his work at “La Renaissance.” In 1929, he decorated eight panels at the Town Hall of the Pueblo Español and exhibited at the Sala Parés, where he would return on subsequent occasions. Although his early period was influenced by Mir, he soon evolved toward a distinctive style, emphasizing constructive line and a unique color palette of understated beauty. His still lifes and interiors, rendered with a profusion of line and transparency, are a marvel of serenity and elegance. His landscapes are deeply evocative. Here he presents his own self-portrait, created—according to the inscription below—when he was thirty years old. His works are represented in museums in Barcelona, Madrid, and other cities around the world.