JOAN BUSQUETS I JANÉ (Barcelona, 1874 - 1949).
Modernist ceiling with the Virgin of La Merced, ca. 1900.
Marquetry and mother-of-pearl.
With manufacturer's plaque.
Measurements: 73 x 53 cm; 91 x 71 cm (frame).
Marquetry panel in the Art Nouveau style, a design by Joan Busquets representing the Virgin of La Mercè, patron saint of Barcelona. The panel is made using classical marquetry, a traditional technique revived in Modernisme, which is based on the construction of a mosaic inlaid on a wooden background, made up of pieces of different woods and other materials, cut out individually. In this case, the woods of different tones and grain are complemented by delicate pieces of mother-of-pearl that add lustre to Mary's crown.
The Virgin appears half-length, with a typically modernist melancholy expression, holding the Child in her arms, with the ancient coat of arms of the city of Barcelona on her breast and the broken shackles in her right hand. The representation is enriched by the expressive grain and water of the different woods, intentionally arranged to create contrast.
A furniture designer and decorator, Joan Busquets is now considered one of the most representative figures of Catalan modernism. He began his training in the family workshop and went on to study at the Llotja School in Barcelona, where his teachers were Guitart and Lostaló. In the academic year 1895-96 he was awarded a scholarship which enabled him to travel around Spain, and which he obtained thanks to a project for a Renaissance-style bookcase-cabinet. He exhibited furniture projects for the first time at the Barcelona Exhibition of 1896. Joan Busquets' workshop was one of the most outstanding in Modernista Catalonia and is today, together with the production of Gaspar Homar, the most representative example of Catalan Modernista furniture and decoration. He was president of the Foment de les Arts Decoratives between 1918 and 1921, and supervised the manufacture of the furniture for Gaudí's Casa Calvet. Works by Busquets can currently be found in the National Art Museum of Catalonia, the Güell Palace in Barcelona, the National Museum of Decorative Arts and the Museum of Catalan Modernism in Barcelona, among others, as well as in various important private collections.