JOSÉ NAVARRO LLORENS (Valencia, 1867 - 1923).
"Arab caravan".
Oil on canvas.
Signed in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 80 x 140 cm; 110 x 170 cm (frame).
This painting was made by José Navarro as a result of his trip to Morocco, a country whose landscapes and people would inspire him splendid paintings of caravans advancing through arid and wild orographies. The influence of Mariano Fortuny can be seen in the vitalism of the brushstroke, energetic and agile, based on vibrant touches of the brush which submerge us in the mystery of Arabia and North Africa, his is an energetic realism which converts light into a plastic and even tactile value, not only chromatic.
José Navarro Llorens turned to painting at an early age and studied at the San Carlos School of Fine Arts in his native city. After his time as a student we lose track of him, and we do not meet him again until 1895 when, according to Pantorba, he took part for the first and only time in the National Exhibition of Fine Arts, receiving an honourable mention. It would appear that Navarro never intended to project his work beyond a limited local sphere, as can be deduced from the fact that in his early years he painted genre scenes and scenes of gallantry for fans. At the beginning of the 20th century he was contracted to decorate a palace in Buenos Aires, although Navarro never arrived in Argentina. He set sail for that destination, but during a stopover in Rio de Janeiro the painter decided to stay there indefinitely. He continued to work in the Brazilian city and held a highly acclaimed exhibition. However, nostalgia for his homeland, the absolute protagonist of his pictorial language, led him to return to Valencia, where he settled permanently in Godella. There he lived the rest of his life in a simple and humble manner, giving painting classes at the town's Academy and painting tirelessly. His style drew on various influences, such as Fortuny, Domingo Marqués and Levantine luminism, but it was always deeply personal, linked to Navarrete's own way of understanding the world. José Navarro is represented in the Fine Arts Museums of Valencia and Asturias, as well as in the Gerstenmaier collection.