Juan Martínez Abades

JUAN MARTÍNEZ ABADES (Gijón, 1862 - Madrid, 1920).
"Coastal scene". 1912.
Oil on panel.
Signed and dated in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 21 x 50 cm; 25 x 53 cm (frame).

We are before a representative sample of the marine painting of Juan Martínez Abades, one of the main exponents of the landscape realism and costumbrista of the north of Spain at the end of the XIX century and beginnings of the XX. The scene represents a working day on the coast, with beached boats and sailors in full activity, captured in a daily moment of return or preparation.

The composition is organized in a wide horizontal space that gives prominence to the dialogue between land, sea and sky. The human figures contribute scale and dynamism, integrating themselves naturally into the landscape without imposing themselves on it.

Abades uses a loose and nuanced brushstroke, especially visible in the treatment of the sky and water, where reflections and light variations generate a vibrant and changing atmosphere. The chromatic palette, dominated by ochres, earths and greenish blues, reinforces the naturalistic character of the work and evokes the soft light of the Cantabrian coast.

In his work as a whole, marine paintings are highly appreciated and of irreproachable technique. Undoubtedly, it was the genre in which he was best developed, having, in addition, a consolidated market in which he dominated without any possible discussion.

Juan Martínez Abades is represented in the Prado Museum, the Provincial Museum of Lugo, the Jovellanos Museum of Gijón, the Jaume Morera Museum of Lérida and the Municipal Museum of San Telmo in San Sebastián, as well as in the MAXAM collection and other Spanish and foreign collections.