Eduardo Sánchez Solá

EDUARDO SANCHÉZ SOLÁ (Madrid, 1869 – Granada, 1949).
“Altar Boy.”
Oil on canvas.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 80 x 40 cm; 106 x 67 cm (frame).

Sánchez Solá trained at the San Fernando School of Fine Arts, where his teachers included Alejandro Ferrant and Luis Taberner. He later taught at the School of Arts and Crafts in Granada and contributed to the art magazine “La Ilustración Española y Americana.” He regularly participated in the National Fine Arts Exhibitions, receiving an honorable mention in 1895; a third-class medal in 1897 for the painting “Tristes noticias” and in 1899 for “El destete”; a decoration in 1901 and an honorable mention in Decorative Arts in 1904. He also exhibited at the Regional Exhibition of Modern Art in Granada, at the 1942 Art Center Exhibition, and at the Linares Exhibition in 1943. Sánchez Solá specialized in oil paintings depicting scenes of altar boys at play during that era, set inside Andalusian churches. In these works, the artist skillfully captured the expressiveness and movement of the children, who generally appear engrossed in a game. This is why he is known as “the painter of altar boys”; works in this genre that have been preserved include “Corto y ceñido,” “Haz lo que quieras,” “Travesuras,” and others. He was also known as a painter of portraits and landscapes. Today, Sánchez Solá’s works are represented in the Prado Museum and the Provincial Museum of Lugo, as well as in various private collections.