Watercolor of European street by Arturo Souto, c1935

Frame: 33 1/4" x 27.5"
Watercolor: 25" x 19 1/4"

Arturo Souto
(souce: annexgalleries.com) Painter, lithographer, and illustrator Arturo Souto Feijoo was born April 5, 1902 in Pontevedra, Spain. Feijoo was first tutored in painting by his father, a conservative magistrate and hobbyist painter who encouraged his son to pursue rigging as a career, rather than art. Feijoo complied but also enrolled at the Industrial School of Arts and Crafts in Seville in 1916. He graduated in 1920 and in 1922 he enrolled at the Academy of Fine Arts, San Fernando, Madrid. Here, he was first exposed to the work of Salvador Dali and other avant-garde artists

Following the completion of his military service in Vigo in 1924, he had his first solo art exhibition in Madrid, and spent the next year supporting himself as a porcelain decorator in Madrid. In 1926 he traveled to Paris where he was further introduced to new genres, often controversial, which greatly inspired the young artist. Souto returned in 1931 sponsored by his native city of Pontevedra with a special assignment to focus on new trends in art. During this stage of his learning process he was influenced by renowned Italian poet and artist Giorgio de Chirico, known as the founder of the Metaphysical art movement. In 1934, Souto received a scholarship from the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome where he continued his studies until 1936. He continued to exhibit throughout Europe, including in the 1937 Paris International Exhibition of Art and Technology, in the Spanish Pavillion where Pablo Picasso was exhibiting his masterpiece Guernica.

After the Spanish Civil War ended and the Second World War began to ramp up, Souto fled to Havana, Cuba where he had several art exhibitions. He then traveled to New York, Los Angeles and Philadelphia where his work was also displayed in major venues. In 1942 he moved to Mexico City with the assistance of Jaime Mario Torres Bodet, a prominent Mexican politician and writer. Souto lived and worked in Mexico City as a painter and illustrator. He died in 1964.

In 1984 a large retrospective of his works was held at the Bienal de Pontevedra. His work can found in many public and private collections throughout the U.S. and Spain.

Good condition overall