RAMÓN CASAS CARBÓ (Barcelona, 1866 - 1932). "Margarita Isabel Palau de Marfà", 1916. Oil on canvas. Signed and dated in the lower left-hand corner. Size: 185 x 125 cm; 205 x 145 cm (frame). Ramon Casas was an artist famous for his illustrations and portraits, and in this particular case, he masterfully depicted Margarita Isabel Palau de Marfà. His portraits of women bring together both aspects of his work, as the female figure was the very essence of his posters and illustrations. Thus, in his female portraits we see the same sensual and decorative vision of the female figure, both in those in which the lady poses in an insinuating attitude and in those of a more sober conception, such as the one presented here. Here we see an elegant portrait, with a woman looking directly at the viewer, proud and even challenging, but nevertheless displaying the same delicate, seductive beauty typical of Casas's female types. This is also subtly reflected through purely plastic elements such as the contrast between the almost metallic coldness of the model's elegant dress and the warmth, softness and smoothness of the flesh tones, pink on the face and slightly more pearly on the chest and arms. Elegantly coiffed, her deep, expressive dark eyes, highlighted by a delicate shadow on the eyelids, reminiscent of symbolism, look directly at the viewer. The sober, almost solemn expression is completed by the small mouth painted in deep coral, puckered and serious, which speaks to us of the woman's character better than any accessory symbol. The lady is adorned with several magnificently worked jewels, which, however, do not compete in importance with the face, the absolute centre of the composition. An outstanding painter and draughtsman, Casas began painting as a pupil of Joan Vicens. In 1881 he made his first trip to Paris, where he completed his training at the Carolus Duran and Gervex academies. The following year he took part for the first time in an exhibition at the Sala Parés in Barcelona, and in 1883 he presented a self-portrait at the Salon des Champs Elysées in Paris, which earned him an invitation to become a member of the Salon de la Societé d'Artistes Françaises. He spent the following years travelling and painting between Paris, Barcelona, Madrid and Granada. In 1886, suffering from tuberculosis, he settled in Barcelona to recover. There he came into contact with Santiago Rusiñol, Eugène Carrière and Ignacio Zuloaga. After a trip to Catalonia with Rusiñol in 1889, Casas returned to Paris with his friend. The following year he took part in a group exhibition at the Sala Parés, together with Rusiñol and Clarasó, and in fact the three of them continued to hold joint exhibitions there until Rusiñol's death in 1931. His fame continued to spread throughout Europe, and he held successful exhibitions in Madrid and Berlin, as well as taking part in the Chicago World's Fair of 1893. Casas settled permanently in Barcelona, immersed in the Modernist atmosphere, although he continued to travel to Paris for the annual salons. He financed the café Els Quatre Gats, which was to become a point of reference for the Modernists, and which opened in 1897. Two years later he organised his first solo exhibition at the Sala Parés. While his fame as a painter grew, Casas began to work as a graphic designer, adopting the Art Nouveau style that came to define Catalan Modernisme. In the following years his successes followed one after another: he presented two works at the Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1900, won a prize in Munich in 1901, several of his works were included in the permanent exhibition at the Circulo del Liceo, he held several international exhibitions and, in 1904, won first prize at the General Exhibition in Madrid. He was represented in the Prado Museum, the Museo Nacional de Arte de Cataluña, the Museo Nacional Reina Sofía, the Thyssen-Bornemisza, the Museo de Montserrat, the Cau Ferrat in Sitges, among many others.