Carlos Mensa

CARLOS MENSA CORCHETE (Barcelona, 1936-1982).
Untitled.
Mixed media on paper.
Signed.
Measurements: 49 x 72 cm; 52 x 74 cm (frame).
Carlos Mensa was a painter of the 20th century self-taught in the three fields for which he was recognized: painting, drawing and sculpture (except for some courses such as the one he took at the Real Círculo Artístico de Barcelona towards the middle of the century, or the scholarship that allowed him to go to Paris in 1966). After his journey through the Civil War, he returned to Barcelona in 1950, to devote himself to painting seven years later, after seeing an exhibition and under the impression that caused him, above all, the works of Giorgio de Chirico. Founder of Grupo Síntesis with Teo Asensio and Enrique Maas in 1961, he decided two years later to devote himself exclusively to painting. He always stood out for his particular style, totally alien to the fashions of each moment, but influenced by the avant-garde that the artist wanted, so that he was not apart from modernity. His technical perfection is also frequently mentioned, with which he presents works that can be related to certain elements of Expressionism, Realism, Surrealism, with certain artists or important works of the past and, often, a fierce criticism, constantly seeking the absurd and corrosive, seeking situations of impact almost always extreme and somewhat risky, almost like allegories in images, or visual metaphors. His work has been exhibited in Milan, Paris, Rome, Palma de Mallorca, Bremen, Madrid, Barcelona, etc., and is kept in several private collections and in outstanding institutions such as the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofái in Madrid, the Museo d'Arte Constantino Barbella, the Musei Palazzo d'Avalos, the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Barcelona, etc.