JOSEP GUINOVART

Josep Guinovart i Bertran was born in Barcelona on March 20, 1927. His paternal family is from Tarragona and his maternal family from Agramuntinos. This geographical duality is constantly reflected in the artist's work: the infinite blues of the Mediterranean and the warm ochres of Urgell.

 

He entered the School of Master Painters, the School of Arts and Crafts, and attended classes at the FAD (Faculty of Arts and Design). In 1953, thanks to a scholarship from the French State, he went to Paris, where he became thoroughly acquainted with the work of Cézanne and Matisse, who, along with Miró and Gaudí, would be his most important influences.

 

In 1954, along with other artists, he founded the short-lived Tahull group, which brought together the avant-garde creators of those years. In his early period, he painted simple, popular subjects, rendered with extraordinary draftsmanship and a striking sense of color, which later often acquired a social connotation. Gradually, he abandoned representationalism and created a new universe in which matter and elements became his language.

 

During his long career he received the most important awards and distinctions in the world of art, such as the National Prize for Plastic Arts from the Government of Spain (1982) and from the Department of Culture of the Generalitat of Catalonia (1990); the Cross of Saint George from the Executive Council of the Generalitat of Catalonia (1983); Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters from the Ministry of Culture of the French Republic (1984) and Honorary Academician appointed by the Royal Catalan Academy of Fine Arts of Sant Jordi (2006).

 

In 1994, thanks to the insistence of the then mayor of Agramunt, Josep Huguet, the Fundació Espai Guinovart Agramunt was inaugurated, a space where Guinovart collects his memories of the town linked to his roots and his war memories.

 

A tireless worker, he died on December 12, 2007, paintbrush in hand, leaving a very important legacy of works that can be seen in numerous museums and art centers around the world.