Alberto Pla Rubio

ALBERTO PLA RUBIO (Villanueva de Castellón, Valencia, 1867 - Barcelona, 1937).
"Figure and lamb", 1910.
Oil on canvas.
Signed and dated in the lower left corner.
With label on the back of the Sala Parés.
Measurements: 60.5 x 50 cm; 84 x 70 cm (frame).

Delicate scene of symbolic character in which a young woman appears represented in a flowery meadow holding a bouquet of poppies, accompanied by a lamb. The composition, impregnated with a luminous and serene atmosphere, combines the naturalism of the landscape with a subtle poetic and allegorical sense. The white dress contrasts with the intense vegetation and the red flowers that dot the field, creating a harmonious chromatic play.

The work evidences Pla Rubio's refined pictorial language, close to the lyrical naturalism and Mediterranean luminism developed by various Spanish artists around the turn of the century. The loose and vibrant brushstrokes, together with the attention to the effects of light on the vegetation, contribute to the construction of a scene of great atmospheric sensitivity.

Trained at the San Fernando Academy in Madrid with Alejandro Ferrant, Pla Rubio furthered his studies at San Carlos in Valencia. He won the First Medal at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts in 1895 for ¡A la guerra! and further awards at the Barcelona Exhibition (1899), the Paris Salon (1901) and the Munich Exhibition (1913). He also worked as a professor at the Academies of Fine Arts in Valencia and Cadiz and at La Lonja in Barcelona. His painting evolved from social realism towards a luminism of impressionist brushstrokes close to Sorolla.

His work is preserved in institutions such as the Prado Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts of Valencia, the MACBA and the Nelson Zúmel Collection.