JESÚS CARLES VILALLONGA (Girona, 1927-Barcelona, 2018).
"Head of a woman", 1994.
Acrylic on táblex.
Signed and dated in the lower right corner.
Size: 30 x 40 cm; 46 x 56 cm (frame).
Vilallonga's style is colourist and somewhat naïve, influenced by surrealism and some contributions from futurism, as can be seen in this woman's head, where the design of the hair recalls the incipient kinetic experiments of this avant-garde style. Jesus Carles Vilallonga spent a decisive period of his life as an artist in Montreal, Quebec. There, in 1958, Vilallonga signed an exclusive contract with Max Stern, owner of the prestigious Dominion Gallery in Montreal, who was responsible for presenting the contemporary European artists Henry Moore, Marino Marini, Van Dongen and Picabia in Canada. He exhibited in other important cities such as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, London, Berlin, Vienna, Rome, Bilbao, Madrid and Barcelona.
Jesús Vilallonga studied at the Sant Jordi School of Fine Arts in Barcelona, under the guidance of masters such as Labarta, Montaner, Ribera, Santasusagna, Marés and Farré. He held his first individual exhibition in 1947, in the halls of Girona City Hall. In 1953 he won first prize at the Fine Arts Exhibition of the Virreina in Barcelona. That same year he made a study trip to Europe, visiting Paris, Brussels, Holland, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and, of course, Italy. When he returned to Barcelona in 1954, he exhibited his works at the Argos Gallery, to great critical acclaim.