Venancio Vallmitjana

VENANCIO VALLMITJANA BARBANY (Barcelona, 1826/28 - 1919).
"Portrait of Evaristo Arnús".
Patinated terracotta.
Signed on the lower right and inlaid.
Measurements: 40,5 x 44 x 23 cm.

In this occasion Venancio Vallmitjana immortalizes the banker and financier Evaristo Arnús in a diplomatic but casual way. The protagonist rests in a relaxed posture with his monocles in his right hand, on a chair with bangs around his waist. Next to him, the sculptor represents his dog, a dog with an elegant demeanor that shows loyalty to him.

Brother of the sculptor Agapito Vallmitjana, he began his training with him at the School of Fine Arts of La Lonja in Barcelona, where they were disciples of Damià Campeny. Venancio obtained the school's prize in 1844. Between 1853 and 1854 he made, together with his brother, the statues of the Evangelists for the altar of the church of San Justo in Barcelona, which would be his first important commission. In 1856 Venancio was appointed professor at the School of La Lonja, and two years later he was commissioned to create the allegorical figures for the façade of the Bank of Barcelona, a work that until then, for reasons of prestige, had been left in the hands of Italian sculptors. His teaching work is especially noteworthy, as he was the teacher of outstanding sculptors such as Pablo Gargallo. Queen Isabella II visited the brothers' workshop in 1861, and commissioned a portrait of him and a Saint George. Venancio participated alone in the National Exhibition of Fine Arts in Madrid in 1864, and with his brother in the editions of 1867 and 1876. In 1890 he participated again alone and obtained a first medal. Both traveled to Manchester in 1872 to portray Lord Stanley and his wife, and Venancio later traveled alone to Paris, where his work aroused the interest of the French public. The Vallmitjana brothers were among the best representatives of Catalan sculpture of their time, and their work was characterized by romantic reminiscences and a marked realist detail. They also stood out for the great naturalism of their works. Agapito opted for a restrained pathos, while Venancio, undoubtedly more brilliant, is characterized by a greater spectacularity and a taste for anecdotalism. Venancio was the only one of the two who worked with glazed ceramics applied to sculpture. Venancio Vallmitjana is represented in the Lázaro Galdiano Museum, the Army Museum in Madrid, the Gaudí House Museum, as well as public works in Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia.