Josep Guinovart

Josep Guinovart i Bertran (20 March 1927 in Barcelona – 12 December 2007 in Barcelona) was a Spanish painter most famous for his informalist or abstract expressionist work.[1][2]

In this Catalan name, the first or paternal surname is Guinovart and the second or maternal family name is Bertran; both are generally joined by the conjunction "i".
Josep Guinovart
Guinovart in the Catalonia History Museum 2007
Born
Josep Guinovart i Bertran

(1927-03-20)20 March 1927
Barcelona
Died12 December 2007(2007-12-12) (aged 80)
Resting placeSant Gervasi Cemetery, Barcelona
Occupationartist
Known forabstract expressionist work
AwardsNational Award for Plastic Arts (1982)
Josep Guinovart, untitled, 1985/86, Palma de Mallorca, Parc de la Mar

In 1941, he began to work as a decorator. Three years later, he started his studies at the Escuela de Artes y Oficios de la Llotja (Art School of La Llotja) where he stayed until 1946.

He first exhibited his work in 1948 in Galerías Syla in Barcelona. In 1951, he produced his first engravings entitled 'Homage to Federico García Lorca'. Two years later, he was awarded a grant from the French Institute to study in Paris for nine months. Here he discovered the cubist works of Matisse and Picasso and travelled to Belgium, Holland and Germany.

On his return to Barcelona and after a period working as an illustrator and set designer, around 1957 he began moving towards abstract art. His work is highly unconventional and usually on a large scale, using a wide range of materials, three-dimensional objects and organic substances such as eggshell, earth and straw.[3]

In 1962, he illustrated a book of poetry entitled Posies by Joan Salvat-Papasseit for the Ariel Editorial. He won many accolades for his work throughout the 1970s and 80s, including Spain's National Award for Plastic Arts in 1982.[4]

In 1994, a museum foundation dedicated to his art was inaugurated in Agramunt, his mother's birthplace to which he always felt a special attachment.

In 2006 he designed the winery Mas Blanch i Jové in La Pobla de Cérvoles (Lleida) and created The Artists' Vineyard, a project intended to mix sculptures and other art works from different artists in the middle of a vineyard. The Artists' Vineyard was inaugurated after his death in 2010 with the unveiling of his sculpture The Countryside Organ: a music instrument, 6 meters height, for the wind to sing the vines. This winery also displays the 10.5 meters work In Vino Veritas and other artists' works.

He died on 12 December 2007 at the age of 80, a few days after suffering a heart attack. He is buried in the Sant Gervasi Cemetery, Barcelona.

Museums and public collections with his artwork

References
  1. Eaude, Michael (15 January 2008). "Obituary: Josep Guinovart". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  2. March, Fundación Juan. "Josep Guinovart [english] • Museu Fundación Juan March, Palma". www.march.es. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  3. March, Fundación Juan. "Josep Guinovart [english] • Museu Fundación Juan March, Palma". www.march.es. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  4. Martínez Novillo, Álvaro (July–August 1983). "Los Premios Nacionales de Artes Plásticas" [The National Awards for Plastic Arts]. Cuenta y Razón (12). Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  5. Guinovart biography & list of works in the permanent collection, MACBA. [Retrieved 30 March 2019]
  6. Guinovart biography & works in the permanent collection, La Caixa Collection of Contemporary Art, CaixaForum. [Retrieved 30 March 2019]
  7. Guinovart in the Permanent Collection, on the Reina Sofía Museum's website. [Retrieved 30 March 2019]
  8. "Comparem Guinovart", about two of his pieces in the museum's permanent collection, (in Catalan). [Retrieved 30 March 2019]
  9. Guinovart biography & works in the permanent collection, Fundación Juan March official website. [Retrieved 30 March 2019]
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