GASPAR HOMAR MEZQUIDA (Bunyola, Mallorca, 1870 - Barcelona, 1953).

GASPAR HOMAR MEZQUIDA (Bunyola, Mallorca, 1870 - Barcelona, 1953). Pair of modernist chairs, ca. 1900. Mahogany wood with marquetry, carving and gilding. Measurements: 103 x 42 x 45 cm. Pair of modernist chairs of great richness, a design by Gaspar Homar that combines classical and modernist lines and different techniques and decorative styles. The structure is light and stylised, with eminently straight lines, with four square-section legs that are narrower towards the base, to visually lighten the design. The waist of the chairs takes on a special relevance, as it is decorated with naturalistic vegetal motifs carved in relief on a nuanced, golden background, which enhances its volume. In addition, the front of the waistband has a trilobate cut-out, with the corners decorated with trilobate leaves of neo-Gothic heritage, typical of Homar's production. On the back, which is open and has a central spade, we see similar carvings on a gilt background on the crest, with a sinuous profile and a soft, typically modernist appearance. However, the style and decorative technique are different on the back. We see a floral composition made in classic marquetry in light tones on a background of beautiful and expressive root veining, and at the base of this panel are two rosettes carved in relief, whose naturalism contrasts with the more synthesised and geometric language of the flowers in the marquetry. A modernist cabinetmaker and decorator, Gaspar Homar began his training at the Escuela de La Lonja in Barcelona and then furthered his knowledge in the workshop of the cabinetmaker Francesc Vidal, who had also been his father's teacher. In 1893, just ten years later, they both opened their own establishment in Barcelona, under the name of P. Homar e Hijo. Two years later his father died, leaving Gaspar in charge of the workshop. Throughout his fruitful career he took part in exhibitions in London, Madrid, Barcelona, Saragossa and Paris, and was a member of the jury of the 1908 Venice International. Homar began his style within the neo-Gothic trend but soon specialised in Modernisme, a style in which he produced his best works until 1918, later devoting himself to the production of conventional furniture. During these years he collaborated with Sebastià Junyent, Joan Carreres and Josep Pey Farriol in the design of furniture and complete rooms, with an exquisite richness of design, figurative marquetry in soffits and furniture which are his hallmark, etc. He incorporated exotic woods such as sycamore, banana, mahogany and rosewood. His production of ornamental furniture (chests, umbrella stands, etc.) as well as beds, wardrobes and chairs was well known. His best known works are the complete decoration of the Lleó-Morera (1904), Navàs and Burés houses, as well as several buildings by Gaudí and Doménech i Montaner. He also won, among other awards, the Grand Prize for Furniture and Decoration at the London Exhibition of 1907, the Grand Prize, Gold Medal and Grand Cup at the Esposizione Internazionale Industria-Lavoro Arte Decorativa in Venice (1908) and the Grand Prize at the Exposition Internationale de Confort Moderne in Paris in 1909. Today, pieces of furniture by Gaspar Homar are kept in the Museo Nacional de Arte de Cataluña, the Museo de Art Nouveau y Art Déco Casa Lis in Salamanca and the Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas in Madrid, among others.