Menchu Gal

MENCHU GAL (Irún, Guipúzcoa, 1919 – San Sebastián, 2008).
“The Forest.” Northern Etchings Series.
Etching and aquatint on paper. Print no. 64/150.
Signed and numbered in pencil.
Measurements: 36 x 47 cm (print); 46 x 56.5 cm (paper).
Part of the renowned “Aguafuertes del Norte” series, *El bosque* (Baso) is an excellent example of Menchu Gal’s work in printmaking, a field in which she consistently conveyed the same artistic concerns that defined her painting. In this print, the artist depicts a stylized figure seated on a wooded path, rendered through a composition of great formal simplicity and intense evocative power, in which nature takes center stage.
The work highlights Gal’s deep connection to the landscape of northern Spain, a constant throughout her career. Far from a descriptive representation, the setting is interpreted through a lyrical sensibility in which color and formal synthesis become the primary means of expression. The warm tones of reds, oranges, and browns are hallmarks of the scene, contrasting with the serenity of the landscape and creating a chromatic vibrancy that imbues the scene with an intimate and contemplative atmosphere.
Menchu Gal was a leading figure in the renewal of postwar Spanish landscape painting and was associated with the so-called Madrid School. Initially trained by Gaspar Montes Iturrioz, she furthered her studies in Paris with Amédée Ozenfant and at the San Fernando School of Fine Arts. In 1959, she became the first woman to win the National Painting Prize. Her work is part of the collections of the Reina Sofía National Art Museum and the Bilbao Fine Arts Museum.