José Cusachs

JOSEP CUSACHS (Montpellier, France, 1851 - Barcelona, 1908).
"Soldier". 1888.
Watercolor on paper.
Signed and dated in the lower left corner.
Presents some humidity stains on the paper.
Measurements: 21 x 15 cm; 45 x 35 cm (frame).

José Cusachs was born accidentally in France, since his parents were there on a trip, but his art and his life were always linked to two localities: Barcelona and Mataró. In 1865, after passing a competitive examination, he entered the Artillery Academy to pursue a military career. However, in 1882, after a brilliant career that led him to be Captain of the Army for war merits, he asked for retirement to devote himself to painting. Trained in Barcelona under the direction of Simón Gómez, he completed his artistic studies with a stay in Paris, in the studio of Édouard Détaille, one of the greatest experts in military themes, a genre that would be Cusachs' favorite. Within the military themes, this artist was especially inclined to cavalry, due to his passion for horses. In 1880 he settled in Barcelona and began an extensive production of military studies, which were reproduced in the work of F. Barado entitled "La vida militar en España" (Military life in Spain). Previously, before leaving the Army, he had worked as a caricaturist and chronicler of a Spain immersed in a maelstrom of political events, in which he was immersed due to his military condition. During these years he would make his work known through individual exhibitions, such as those he held regularly since 1884 in the Sala Parés in Barcelona, always obtaining great success in sales and critics. In 1890 he was already a regular exhibitor at the gallery, where he showed new works every week. The bond between Cusachs and the Sala Parés was so deep, in fact, that after the painter's death the gallery fell into a period of absolute decadence. Cusachs also participated in official competitions; in 1887 he obtained notable recognition at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts in Madrid with three paintings, one of which was acquired by the regent María Cristina ("En el campo de maniobras"). In 1891 he participated in the Berlin Exhibition and won the Gold Medal for his work "Maneuvers of division". The bulk of his work is collected in the Museum of Modern Art in Madrid and the National Art Museum of Catalonia, as well as other centers such as the Museum of Montserrat, the National Museum of History, the Captaincy General of Valencia, the Artillery Headquarters of Valladolid, the Gallery of Illustrious Captains of the City Council of Barcelona and prominent private collections, such as the Santiago Gramunt.