Bernardino Celià

BERNARDINO CELIÀ COLOM (Sóller, Mallorca, 1921–1985).
“La Calobra.”
Oil on panel.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Signed and titled on the reverse.
Measurements: 44 x 53 cm; 69 x 79 cm (frame).

The work encapsulates the material language with which Bernardino Celià interpreted the Mallorcan landscape, moving away from a strictly descriptive representation to construct the subject through color, impasto, and light hallmarks. In contrast to his more expansive views of the mountains and the northern coast of Mallorca, the painter focuses here on a corner of rural architecture, integrated into the vegetation and rendered with marked artistic intensity.

Born in Sóller, Bernardino Celià developed the bulk of his body of work around the Serra de Tramuntana, the coves, and the rural landscapes of northern Mallorca. He began exhibiting his work in 1947 and gained widespread recognition both on and off the island, establishing himself as a leading figure in Mallorcan landscape painting during the second half of the 20th century. In 1989, the Sóller City Council named a street in the town of Biniaraix after him following his death.