Tito Cittadini

TITO CITTADINI PODESTA (Buenos Aires, 1886 - Pollença, Mallorca, 1960).
"Landscape of Mallorca".
Oil on artist's cardboard.
Signed and dated in the lower right margin.
Measurements: 37 x 46 cm; 53 x 61 cm (frame).
Son of the Argentine journalist of Italian origin Basilio Cittadini, Tito Cittadini initiated in 1907 studies of Architecture in Buenos Aires, but soon he decides to abandon them to dedicate himself totally to the painting. He began his career in an academicist and figurative style, which he soon abandoned, attracted by the new pictorial currents of his time. He then undertook a trip to Europe, and in 1910 he settled in Paris, where he studied with Raul Mazza, also Argentinean, in the workshop of Anglada Camarasa, from 1911. From Paris, under the influence of the master, he traveled through Spain on several occasions from 1912, and in 1913 he arrived for the first time in Mallorca. In 1914, on the occasion of the outbreak of the First World War, he followed Anglada Camarasa and settled permanently on the island, where the Catalan master had founded the Pollensa School of Painting, of which Cittadini became co-director. However, from Mallorca he made frequent trips abroad. In 1950 he had an outstanding participation in the International Exhibition of Pittsburgh, United States, and that same year he founded, together with other artists, the Group of Balearic Watercolorists. Fascinated by the Balearic landscape and customs, Cittadini dedicated his painting to the representation of characters, landscapes and customs of the islands, with a very personal style that, although it shows influences of Anglada Camarasa and impressionism, is distinguished by the subtlety of his figures, a clear and warm palette, a compositional harmony based on geometry and a masterful handling of the chromatic planes. His works, apparently simple, have a deep background of study of perspectives, planes and composition, resulting in works marked by a calm vitality. For this, on the other hand, he frequently resorted to watercolors. Apart from his plastic work, Cittadini also left an important written legacy that includes aphorisms, aesthetic thoughts, journalistic collaborations, etc., with his "Vademecum of the aspiring painter", published in 1965, standing out in particular. A large part of Cittadini's production is collected in Majorcan museums, such as the Pollensa Museum, the Spanish Art Museum or the Krekovic Museum, although he is also represented in other centers such as the Museo de Bellas Artes de La Plata or the Museo del Prado (his work is on deposit at the Ministry of Justice).