Ricardo Baroja Nessi

RICARDO BAROJA Y NESSI (Riotinto, Huelva, 1871 - Vera de Bidasoa, Navarra, 1953).
"Couple in Landscape" and "Village Scene". 1906.
Pair of engravings on paper.
Signed in plate.
Measurements: 13.5 x 21 cm (print); 38 x 46 cm (paper); 47 x 55 x 2 cm (frame).

Painter, engraver and writer of the Generation of 98, and brother of Pío Baroja, he was self-taught. Developing a style contrary to the aesthetic taste of the artistic juries of the beginning of the century, Baroja presented himself at the Modern Art Exhibition in Bilbao from 1900, and exhibited his work in different places, preferably San Sebastian and Madrid. Towards 1900-1906, he focused with dedication on the cultivation of etching, becoming considered the best Spanish master in this field after Goya, standing out from the beginning as a profound portraitist, author of beautiful etchings and scenes of popular life, between Goyaesque and lyrical. At the same time, he dedicated himself to writing. In 1903 he founded, in collaboration with Pablo Picasso and Francisco de Asís Soler, the "Arte Joven" group. In 1928 he was appointed professor at the National School of Graphic Arts. However, as a result of a traffic accident the artist loses an eye and is forced to give up painting, focusing from then on literature. Little by little, he took up brushes again, but he hardly ever painted from life. During the Civil War he lost contact with his brother, who fled to France, and he made a living painting. After the war he continued painting, although only in summer, and writing. In 1940 he again held exhibitions in the art galleries of San Sebastian, Bilbao and Madrid, obtaining great commercial success. In San Sebastian he founds, together with Martiarena, the Artistic Association of Guipuzcoa. In 1952, a year before his death, his success is confirmed with the sale of all his paintings in an exhibition held in San Sebastian. Ricardo Baroja is represented in the Provincial Museum of Lugo, the Fine Arts Museums of Bilbao and Alava, and the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastian, among others.