Josep Cañas

JOSEP CAÑAS I CAÑAS (Banyeres del Penedés, Tarragona, 1905 - El Vendrell, Tarragona, 2001).
"Jacinto Roca, Businessman", 1944.
Bronze.
Signed and dated on the base.
Bechini Foundry.
Size: 80 x 32 x 17 cm (sculpture) + 5,5 x 29,5 x 18,5 cm (base).
A self-taught draughtsman and sculptor, Josep Cañas attended some courses at the School of Arts and Crafts in Villanueva y la Geltrú, and soon came into contact with artists such as Damià Torrents and Joaquín Mir. In 1925, after a period in Sitges, Cañas settled in Barcelona, where he joined the Círculo de Sant Lluc and the Real Círculo Artístico, where he was a member of the board of directors. During these years he devoted himself to landscape painting, and in 1927 he took part in the Second Art Exhibition of the Penedès region, held in El Vendrell. He also devoted himself to theatre during these years, and in 1927 he premiered his first play. Two years later he again took part in the Penedès Exhibition. In 1930 he set up his first studio in Barcelona, thanks to a grant from the Tarragona Provincial Council, and in 1932 he held his first individual exhibition at the Sala Parés. From these years onwards Cañas regularly exhibited his work at the Montjuic Salon. In 1935 he was awarded a travel grant by the Generalitat, which enabled him to travel to London to visit the British Museum, and later to Paris. On his return, in 1937 he was appointed secretary of the Casal de Cultura de Catalunya, although he declined the appointment in order to go to fight on the Ebro front. There, however, he did not enter combat, but devoted himself to making the models commissioned by the General Staff. Once the war was over he won the prize for sculpture at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts in 1942, and the Barcelona Museum of Modern Art acquired one of his works. The following year he worked with Ignacio Zuloaga, and in 1947 he held an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in Madrid, at which the Institute of Hispanic Culture acquired one of his works to take it to America. He then embarked with the work, which was installed in Carmel, California. The following year he held an exhibition of his works in Carmel, California. He then travelled to Mexico, where he stayed for several years and held various exhibitions of his work in Mexico and New York. In 1954 he exhibited at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico, and the following year he left the country to take part in the Hispano-American Biennial held in Barcelona, where he was given a room of his own. Once back in Spain, he continued to exhibit his work in prestigious galleries such as the Parés in Barcelona, the O'Hana in London and the Museo de Arte Moderno in Madrid, as well as carrying out important commissions for the Geneva Museum and other important clients. In 1957 he won a medal at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts, and in 1964 he inaugurated the relief "La Sardana" in the Retiro Park in Madrid, commissioned by the Casal Català in that city. His public and official recognition would only increase, books were published with his work and he was awarded honours such as the Cross of Sant Jordi by the Generalitat de Catalunya in 1986, or the appointment of illustrious son of his native town.