91 - MANUEL RAMÍREZ IBÁÑEZ (Arjona, Jaén, 1856 – Madrid, 1925).

MANUEL RAMÍREZ IBÁÑEZ (Arjona, Jaén, 1856 – Madrid, 1925). “Seascape.” Oil on panel. Signed in the lower right corner. Measurements: 17 x 26 cm; 28.5 x 38 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. A prominent painter from Jaén, Manuel Ramírez trained at the Higher School of Painting, Sculpture, and Engraving in Madrid, and in 1879 he received a scholarship to the Spanish Academy in Rome, becoming part of the second generation of history painters trained there. A disciple of Federico de Madrazo, his body of work encompasses the various themes characteristic of the period: history painting, genre scenes, portraiture, and landscape, not to mention religious painting. He regularly participated in the National Fine Arts Exhibitions, winning a third-class medal in 1878—even before leaving for Rome—for his painting “The Death of Francisco Pizarro.” From the Italian capital, Ramírez continued to submit his works to the National Exhibitions: “Pompeian Bath” in 1881 and a copy of a Titian painting in 1882. Upon his return, he combined his artistic practice with teaching and served as a professor at the School of Arts and Crafts in Madrid. Upon the death of José Casado del Alisal, he was commissioned to complete the painting “Confirmation of the Order of Santiago” in the Madrid basilica of San Francisco el Grande. To this day, his works are preserved in the Prado Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts in Badajoz, the Army Museum in Madrid, the Municipal Museum of Fine Arts in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, and the San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián, among other public and private collections.