Artist: Jose Ventosa Domenech
Title: Passage Alaro Mallorca
Size: Framed:approx.h:24" x w:30"/Image:approx.h:19"xw:24"
Medium/Ground: Oil on canvas
Year Created:1968
Signature:lower left
Condition:very good/puckering upper right hand corner

Bio: Josep Ventosa Domenech (Barcelona, 1897 - Port d"Andratx, 1982)
Jose Ventosa Domenech was born in Barcelona on May 12, 1897. In 1911, he entered the Superior School of Fine Arts of San Jorge, where he studied Perspective, Art History, and Artistic Anatomy. His first work was exhibited at the "Sala Dalmau" in Barcelona in 1924. He traveled to Brussels and studied avant-garde painting for a few years. Disillusioned, he returned to Barcelona and, inspired by Marti Alsina, turned to landscapes. At the age of 25, he met Meifren and Domingo Soler in Ripoll. He belonged to the "Nou ambient" group and, apart from the group, exhibited in various capitals of Europe and South America. In 1937, he participated in the exhibition-auction "Manifestation of Catalan Art" that was to be held in Mexico. In 1947, he exhibited for the first time in Palma de Mallorca at the "Galeria Costa." The landscapes of Mallorca made Ventosa decide not to leave the island. In 1975, he was honored in the Port of Andratx, where he had established his residence. He was named an honorary citizen of the city in April 1982, one month before his death on May 29.
Four stages of Ventosa"s painting are well described by miquelcinema.blogspot.com: In the first stage, the painter was part of the contemporary movement of his time, Cubism, where he trained and developed as an artist. In the second stage, which he began when he decided to abandon Cubism and return to landscapes with a more classic and academic painting style, he focused on the Catalan countryside, using a palette of "tender" greens and soft blues, without harsh contrasts, creating atmospheres that soften the viewer"s gaze. The third stage began after he moved to Mallorca in 1940, following the Spanish Civil War (as did Joan Miro). During these years, he was dazzled by the light and colors of Mallorcan nature, and his paintings included seascapes, landscapes, and scenes of daily life. His work was of high quality, closely aligned with the French Impressionists of the previous century and the early 20th-century Catalan Novecentistes, paying careful attention to technique and palette. In the second half of the 1950s, he began his fourth stage, which continued until the end of his career. This stage is characterized by the creation of large, commissioned works for private individuals, public institutions, and art galleries. His works often featured expansive landscapes with ancient olive groves in Mallorca, which served as a reference for many subsequent artists.
Ventosa is one of the most important representatives of "Mallorcan landscape art" of the 20th century, recognized worldwide.


Condition:
Alterations: Original Condition Unaltered
Imperfections: Some Imperfections
Condition Notes: The painting is in very good condition. It has some puckering of the canvas in the upper right hand corner. Some light cracking in the upper right quadrant. No paint loss. The frame has a small chip on the upper left.

Origin:
Spain

Materials & Techniques:
Canvas, Oil Paint

Details:
Country of Origin: Spain
What type of item is it? Vintage / Antique / Used
Art Subjects: Landscape
Frame Type: Framed

Original Condition Unaltered; Some Imperfections; The painting is in very good condition. It has some puckering of the canvas in the upper right hand corner. Some light cracking in the upper right quadrant. No paint loss. The frame has a small chip on the upper left.