Julio Romero de Torres

JULIO ROMERO DE TORRES (Cordoba, 1874 - 1930).
"Portrait of a lady with a crystal vase".
Oil and tempera on canvas.
Signed in the lower left corner and on the back.
Measurements: 98 x 113 cm; 119 x 133 cm (frame).
In the magnificent canvas presented here, Julio Romero de Torres, the greatest exponent of symbolism in Spain, is faithful to his style, offering the viewer a spectacular work in which his genius is evident, which lies in its transgression of the limits between the sublime and the decadent. His success was to link symbolism with the casticismo inherent in the Spanish culture of the nineteenth century, related to the regionalist theme and driven by romanticism. Thus, we are faced with a work that fully identifies the production of Romero de Torres in which the Cordovan artist shows us a brunette woman with subtle features, of seductive beauty, richly attired in a delicate silk dress that leaves her shoulders in the air. The Cordovan artist painted numerous female figures, dark-haired women of mysterious and deep look that scandalized in his time, due to the erotic charge offered by their semi-nudity. In their gaze there is a concealment of desire, at the same time, they provoke an intense sensation of ardor and eroticism. They are self-absorbed figures, enclosed by their own passion, allegories of sensuality and sin. On this occasion, the elegance of the sitter is reinforced by the pearl necklace that covers her neck and the purple shawl that is entwined around her right arm, as well as by her typically Andalusian hairstyle, sober yet completely identifiable with the style of Romero de Torres. The magnitude of the portrait, both conceptual and physical, alludes to classical portraits, combining the powerful and imposing character of the woman with the delicacy of the crystal vase placed next to her, which contains two roses symbolizing the inexorable passage of time. In the last room, a sober plain serves as a backdrop, only dotted by a tree whose leafy crown interrupts the horizon and what looks like the spire of a Gothic cathedral.
Julio Romero de Torres was born into an intellectual and artistic environment, which decidedly favored his vocation. His father, Rafael Romero de Barros, was also a painter and curator of the Museum of Fine Arts in Cordoba. Julio Romero began his training in 1884, combining classes at the Conservatory of Music with his father's drawing and painting classes. In 1890 we already find his first known work, "La huerta de Morales", and in 1895 he entered for the first time in the National Exhibition of Fine Arts, with "Mira qué bonita era", a work that earned him an honorable mention and was acquired by the State. In 1897 he opted for the Rome prize, although he did not win the scholarship, and in 1902 he began his teaching career at the School of Fine Arts in Cordoba. The following year he moved to Madrid to learn first hand about the mural painting of the symbolists, after receiving his first major commission, a series of murals dedicated to the arts for the Círculo de la Amista de Córdoba. In this project his work still shows the influence of Puvis de Chavannes. Julio Romero then remained in Madrid, in contact with the circle of Valle-Inclán and Machado, frequenting the gatherings of the Café de Levante while maturing his own style. In 1906 he sent "Vividoras del amor" to the Nacional, a work that was rejected because of its scandalous subject matter. In Madrid he will become known through exhibitions such as the one at the Círculo de Bellas Artes in 1907, and he matures the idea of a trip to Europe that will mark a definitive change in his language, a clear desire for change. He continues to participate in the National Exhibitions, and in 1908 his work "The Gypsy Muse" is acquired by the State and earns him a first medal. This triumph will make that his paintings are sent to exhibitions held abroad, in Buenos Aires and Santiago de Chile. The definitive recognition came in 1910, when he was awarded the Order of Alfonso X the Wise and was appointed inspector of the delegation and royal commissariat at the Art Exhibition in Rome. The following year he was awarded the gold medal at the National Fine Arts of Barcelona, and shortly after he was appointed full member of the Academy of Sciences, Fine and Noble Arts of Cordoba. Julio Romero, however, continued to live in Madrid, frequenting the Café Pombo gathering since 1913. Two years later a special room was dedicated to him at the National Exhibition, and in 1916 he was appointed professor at the Academy of San Fernando. During these years of success and recognition, his studio, in Madrid's Pelayo Street, became the center of gatherings and meetings. However, in 1928 he was forced to return to Cordoba for health reasons, although this did not prevent him from continuing to paint in his studio in the Plaza del Potro. In fact, in 1930, the same year of his death, he participated in the Ibero-American Exposition of Seville with a total of twenty-eight paintings. Although, like many of his contemporaries, Julio Romero began his career cultivating a regionalist work that would evolve along the lines of symbolism, the master would reach the maturity of his personal style around 1912, with a language that combines the Andalusian popular feeling and authentic folklore with the Renaissance tradition of Italian art. At a formal level, Julio Romero expressed himself through a precise drawing, the basis of balanced compositions, on which a personal palette of blue, green and, above all, black tones is developed, giving his work a special lyrical, even mysterious accent. Currently, works by Julio Romero are preserved in the museum that bears his name in Cordoba, the Prado (works attached to the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía), the Fine Arts Museums of Bilbao, Cordoba and Asturias, the National Fine Arts Museum of Buenos Aires, the Carmen Thyssen Museum in Malaga, the Provincial Council of Cordoba, the Abbey of Cordoba, the Abbey of Cordoba, the Abbey of Cordoba, the Abbey of Cordoba, the Abbey of Cordoba and the Abbey of Cordoba, the Diputación de Córdoba, the Abadía de Montserrat, the Nacional de Arte de Cataluña, the art collections of Caja Canarias, the CajaSur collection, the Caja Rural de Córdoba, the Santander collection, the Prasa Foundation and other outstanding public and private collections.