JOAN CARDONA I LLADÓS (Barcelona, 1877-1957). "Young... Lot 5

JOAN CARDONA I LLADÓS (Barcelona, 1877-1957). "Young Parisian Girl". Oil on canvas. Signed in the lower right corner. Size: 50 x 44 cm; 68 x 62 cm (frame). Cardona painted the ladies of the Parisian high society in all kinds of festive and idle atmospheres, but he also showed them immersed in their thoughts, as in this painting where the young woman has her back to the party and isolates herself by withdrawing into herself. Cardona deliberately emphasises the contrast between the figures swarming under the festive lights in the background and the foreground with the pensive lady. Considered one of the most renowned and internationally famous artists, his elegant and glamorous Parisian prints gave the 'Cardona style' its name in the Belle Époque period. Trained at the Escuela de Bellas Artes de la Lonja and at the Baixeras Academy in Barcelona, he furthered his studies in Paris, where he settled for several years. In the French capital he formed a group with the best illustrators of the time, such as Cappiello, Sem, Steinlen and Roubille. A painter and draughtsman, he developed an important activity in the field of illustration, collaborating with Spanish magazines such as "El Gato Negro" and "Hispania", and in the French magazines "Le Rire" and "Simplicissimus". His collaboration with "Jugend", the flagship magazine of Viennese modernism, the Jugendstil, stands out. During his Parisian period Cardona achieved international fame thanks to his pen drawings, characterised by the sharpness of the line and strong expressive values. On the contrary, in his painting he subordinates line to colour, with warm tones in his early years and cold ranges in his maturity. His paintings, of great expressive force and dense impasto, define the leading role of the woman, who is outlined against vibrant, almost abstract backgrounds, in a style that brings him close to Anglada Camarasa. In 1897 he was awarded a prize in the competition organised by the Mariana Academy of Lleida. He exhibited in Paris at the Salons d'Automne and the Salons de la Societé Nationale, obtaining the title of "societaire" at both. He took part in the International Fine Arts Exhibitions in Barcelona in 1907 and 1929. He is represented in the Musée du Luxembourg in Paris.