Mariano Fortuny Y Madrazo
Granada 1871 - Venice 1949
Venecia. Barcas de pescadores
Etching and aquatint
165 x 229 mm; sheet 223 x 274 mm
Signed in brown ink, lower left M. Fortuny. Dedicated in pencil at the right Alla Signorina Clara Cal..si / affettuosamente Mariano Fortuny / 1943.
Very fine impression of an early state, unknown to Vives i Pique and Cuenca Gracia, preceding part of the etched work. Printed on wove paper in brown ink, with a velvety tone in the darkest areas, rich plate-tone, and wiping scratches that are much evident on the right. The sheer density of inking created an impression similar to that of a drypoint on the verso of the sheet, especially in the area corresponding to that of the dense foliage of the bush and tree at the lower right of this composition.
In excellent condition, with large margins.
Reference:
R. Vives i Pique, M.L. Cuenca Gracia, Mariano Fortuny Marsal, Mariano Fortuny Madrazo, Grabados y Dibujos, Madrid 1994; no. 49
Price on application
Information on the master
Mariano Fortuny Y Madrazo was the son of the Spanish painter Mariano Fortuny Marsal, who died in 1874. In his youth he moved to Paris where he studied painting, and in 1889 relocated with his mother, Henriette, to Venice, where he spent the rest of his life. He was a painter and printmaker like his father, but pursued a wider range of interests in photography, theatre and set design, and textiles. He was influenced by the Arts and Crafts Movement and learned to manage all aspects of his designs. He invented innovative lighting techniques for his stage sets, as well as creating his own dyes for colouring fabrics and designing machinery for printing cloth.
Numerous examples of his work can be found in his former home, now the Museo Fortuny in Venice.