Santiago Rusiñol Barcelona 1861-Aranjuez 1931

Galeria d'Ara, Barcelona
Purchased by the present owner from the above in 1984

La Vanguardia, Rusiñol y la Pintura Europea, Barcelona, 17 October 1890, p. 85, pl. 1, illustrated

Original canvas. There are some scattered spots of retouching visible under ultraviolet light, notably a spot towards the centre above the washing line, a spot to the washing line above the seated woman to the left (both corresponding to patched repairs in the canvas) and a few flecks to the white wall to the left. There are a few signs of faint craquelure to the centre visible on close inspection. Held in a decorative plaster moulded gilt frame.
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NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Painted circa 1889-90, this important early work belongs to the series of patio paintings Rusiñol painted in Sitges and in Barceloneta (a neighbourhood in Barcelona's Old Town) upon his return from his first trip to Paris with fellow artist Ramón Casas (lots 157A,169,170 & 217).

While still essentially realist and narrative in style, in contrast to Rusiñol's later impressionistic landscapes (lot 162), Lavanderas de la Barceloneta shows the influence of the modern currents pervading French art, both compositionally and stylistically. The glimpse into the daily life of humble townspeople in particular reflects the work of French Realist Jules Bastien Lepage, while the restrained colour palette, even light, and the division of space remind of the influential style pioneered by James McNeil Whistler. It was Rusiñols's introduction of these new ideas to Catalonia in works such as this that would soon turn him into the undisputed leader of Catalan Modernism.