Antoni Clavé

ANTONI CLAVÉ I SANMARTÍ (Barcelona, 1913 - Saint Tropez, France, 2005).
"Roi", 1975.
Collage and mixed media.
Signed on the front and dedicated on the back.
Measurements: 33 x 29 cm; 56 x 52 cm (frame).

In Rey, Antoni Clavé displays one of the most characteristic facets of his plastic language: the combination of collage, pictorial matter and expressive gesture to construct an ambiguous image, halfway between the figure and the sign. The face in profile, outlined with a thick, synthetic black line, emerges from a dense surface on which paper, earthy pigments, reds and whites are superimposed, creating a relief effect that gives the work a strong physical presence. Above the head of the character, a jagged crown-like shape can be distinguished, which alludes to the title and adds a symbolic and almost ironic tone.

Clavé does not seek to represent a specific king, but to evoke the idea of power and its contradictions. His "king" appears stripped of all pomp and majesty, reduced to a fragmentary mask where matter replaces identity. The rough texture, the hallmarks of light and the poor materials break with the tradition of the royal portrait and transform him into an archetypal and timeless figure, as human as he is grotesque. Thus, the artist poses a reflection on the fragility of power and the theatricality of authority.