78 - Catalan School of the Mid-19th Century

Catalan School of the Mid-19th Century “Landscape.” Oil on panel. Measurements: 22.5 x 54 cm; 28 x 59 cm (frame). Provenance: Estate of Ramon Martí Alsina and Ricard Martí Aguiló. Artistic and heritage collection originating in the legacy of Catalan painters Ramon Martí Alsina (1826–1894), a seminal figure of 19th-century Catalan Realism, and his son Ricard Martí Aguiló (1857–1935). Passed down and enriched across successive generations, the collection brings together works from the original holdings of both artists alongside acquisitions made by their descendants. Dedicated to preserving and recovering the family legacy, the descendants actively reacquired works by the painters as they entered the market, progressively expanding the collection to encompass paintings, sculptures, archaeological artifacts, and other items of artistic and historical significance. The rendering of light and the spontaneity of the brushstrokes take center stage in this panoramic landscape, in which a path of ochre tones leads the eye toward the horizon over the sea. The composition is structured by broad masses of vegetation that frame the scene, contrasting with the luminosity of the sky, rendered through delicate gradations of blue, pink, and pearlescent tones. The treatment of the paint stands out for its loose, energetic, and impasto brushwork, particularly visible in the trees and shrubs in the foreground. The deep greens, warm earth tones, and luminous reflections create an atmosphere of great naturalness.