Josep Duran i Riera

JOSEP DURAN I RIERA (Barcelona, 1849-1928).
"Sellers of hens".1880.
Oil on canvas.
Signed and dated.
With restoration on the canvas.
Measurements: 45 x 37 cm, 52 x 55 cm (frame).

Josep Duran i Riera was a genre painter active in Barcelona in the last third of the XIX century and first of the XX century. Son of Domingo Duran i Aray, teacher, and Antònia Riera i Mayol, natives of Barcelona. He studied at the School of Fine Arts in Barcelona, where he was a disciple of Antoni Caba. His style was influenced by the Catalan Nazarenes and he collaborated with Enric Monserdà.

In 1870 he participated in the Fine Arts Exhibition of Barcelona with the paintings "Un Rabadá" (A Little Shepherd), "Un retrat" (A Portrait) and a "Quadro de casera" (A Housewife's Picture), and in 1871 he presented "Després del treball" (After Work) and "Un subscriptor al diari" (A Subscriber to the Newspaper).

In 1872 he painted "Retrat de dama" (Portrait of a Lady) and "Repassant l'àlbum" (Reviewing the Album), which is exhibited at the Museo Nacional de Arte de Cataluña in Barcelona.

In 1873 he participated in the exhibition of the Barcelona gallery Monter with the works "No hi ha remei¡" (No Remedy!) and "Amors descoberts" (Discovered Loves) and in 1876 with "Una cita" (An Appointment) and "Ja surt el sol" (The Sun Already Rises).

In 1879 he participated in the Fine Arts Exhibition of Girona, where the Provincial Council of Girona bought his painting "La hisenda de la casa" (The House's Treasury) and the Commission of Monuments acquired two "estudis de dona" (Women's Studies). In 1880 he exhibited again in Girona the painting "Vigília de festa" (Party Eve), "El joier ambulant" (The Travelling Jeweler), "Somni" (Dream) and "l'Espampolayray" (perhaps "La Estampa"), and two paintings in the Sala Parés; in 1881 he made five paintings, among which "Lola" and "Una noia del camp" (A Country Girl) stand out, and he exhibited in the artistic center of Olot; In 1882 he made seven paintings, including "En el passeig" (On the Promenade), "L'Estiu" (Summer), "Cap d'estudi" (Study Head) and "Tipus espanyol" (Spanish Type), and in 1887 he exhibited "Una pagesa" (A Peasant Girl) at the Sala Parés.

Towards 1890 he abandoned his exhibition activity and moved away from public life. He died around December 20, 1928.