Lluis Graner

LLUIS GRANER ARRUFÍ (Barcelona, 1863 - 1929).
"Tavern scene".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
Signed.
It has slight flaws in the polychrome and in the frame.
Measurements: 48 x 40 cm; 64 x 56 cm (frame).

Lluís Graner recreates in this canvas a nocturnal interior of strong intimate and narrative load. The contrast between lights and shadows, together with a palette dominated by ochre, deep reds and blacks, creates a dense and enveloping atmosphere, close to tenebrism. The brushstroke is loose but restrained, concentrated on the faces and hands, which act as expressive and psychological focuses of the composition.

Luis Graner y Arrufí was an outstanding painter trained at the School of La Lonja who, after winning important medals at the Universal Exhibitions of Barcelona and Paris in the late nineteenth century, established himself as a key figure on the international scene. In 1904, he promoted the innovative Sala Mercè in Barcelona, designed by Gaudí. He reaped resounding success as a portraitist of high society in New York and San Francisco, even collaborating with the filmmaker David W. Griffith. He died in 1929 in Barcelona, shortly after his return, leaving an artistic legacy present in prestigious institutions such as the Prado Museum, the MNAC and the Hispanic Society.