GASPAR HOMAR MEZQUIDA (Bunyola, Mallorca, 1870... Lot n° 76

GASPAR HOMAR MEZQUIDA (Bunyola, Majorca, 1870 - Barcelona, 1953). Modernist display cabinet, circa 1900. Mahogany wood with carvings and gilding. Measurements: 250 x 132 x 43 cm. Monumental modernist display cabinet created by Gaspar Homar, one of the great cabinetmakers and decorators of Catalan modernism. It has a structure in mahogany wood that is based on classical, architectural forms, and nevertheless breaks with classicism by playing with asymmetry and the contrast between open and closed spaces. It stands on a low base, with a cut-out profile, four bracket-like feet and vegetal motifs carved in relief, scrolls reminiscent of the classical acanthus set against a gilded background. The main body is organised into three sections, with the central section occupied along its entire height by a glazed door with a segmental arch. This door has no decoration other than its clean lines, the bevelled glass and the beautiful patterned paper inside, with a typically Art Nouveau design. The two side streets are divided vertically into three, with two openings and a cupboard on the left side and an inverted layout on the right. On the left side there are carved and turned columns, which support a small cupboard with a door carved in relief on gilding, at half height. On the opposite side, on the other hand, this central space is the only one that remains open, with the cupboards above and below. In this case the design of the front changes, thus emphasising the deliberate asymmetry of the design. We see beautifully veined root veneers and large decorative hinges with a Gothic-inspired cut-out profile in gilded metal. Finally, the piece of furniture is crowned by a last body that is completely open, with a central temple raised on two columns and topped by a stepped cornice, and a back panel decorated with carvings and root veneer. A modernist cabinetmaker and decorator, Gaspar Homar began his training at the La Lonja School in Barcelona, and then furthered his knowledge in the workshop of the cabinetmaker Francesc Vidal, who had also been his father's teacher. In 1893, only ten years later, they both opened their own establishment in Barcelona, under the name of P. Homar e Hijo. Two years later his father died, leaving Gaspar in charge of the workshop. Throughout his fruitful career he took part in exhibitions in London, Madrid, Barcelona, Saragossa and Paris, and was a member of the jury of the 1908 Venice International. Homar began his style within the neo-Gothic trend but soon specialised in Modernisme, a style in which he produced his best works until 1918, later devoting himself to the production of conventional furniture. During these years he collaborated with Sebastià Junyent, Joan Carreres and Josep Pey Farriol in the design of furniture and complete rooms, with an exquisite richness of design, figurative marquetry in soffits and furniture which are his hallmark, etc. He incorporated exotic woods such as sycamore, banana, mahogany and rosewood. His production of ornamental furniture (chests, umbrella stands, etc.) as well as beds, wardrobes and chairs was well known. His best known works are the complete decoration of the Lleó-Morera (1904), Navàs and Burés houses, as well as several buildings by Gaudí and Doménech i Montaner. He also won, among other awards, the Grand Prize for Furniture and Decoration at the London Exhibition of 1907, the Grand Prize, Gold Medal and Grand Cup at the Esposizione Internazionale Industria-Lavoro Arte Decorativa in Venice (1908) and the Grand Prize at the Exposition Internationale de Confort Moderne in Paris in 1909. Today, pieces of furniture by Gaspar Homar are kept in the Museo Nacional de Arte de Cataluña, the Museo de Art Nouveau y Art Déco Casa Lis in Salamanca and the Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas in Madrid, among others.