Simó Gómez Polo (11 November 1845 – 11 June 1880) was a Spanish painter and engraver in the Realist style.

Biography

He was born in

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, and studied at the

Escola de la Llotja The Escola de la Llotja (, "Llotja School"; ), officially the Escola d'Arts i Oficis de Barcelona (Barcelona Arts and Crafts School), is an art and design school located in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The school took its name from its initial ...

under Ramón Martí Alsina and in the lithography workshop of

Eusebi Planas Eusebi Planas i Franquesa (1833, Barcelona - 13 March 1897, Barcelona)) was a Catalan graphic artist, lithographer and watercolorist. Life and work His family wanted him to study law, but his artistic inclinations prevailed, and he found work w ...

.EPdLP: Brief biography
/ref> At the age of seventeen, he travelled to Paris with his brother Enric, who was also an engraver, with the intention of finding employment in the workshop of the French lithographer Alfred Lemercier. However, once there, he decided to become a painter and enroll at the

École des Beaux-arts ; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centu ...

. To prepare for his entrance exam, he worked in the studios of

Alexandre Cabanel Alexandre Cabanel (; 28 September 1823 – 23 January 1889) was a French Painting, painter. He painted historical, classical and religious subjects in the Academic art, academic style. He was also well known as a portrait painter. He was Napoleon ...

and

Tony Robert-Fleury Tony Robert-Fleury (1 September 18378 December 1911) was a French painter, known primarily for historical scenes. He was also a prominent art teacher, with many famous artists among his students. Biography He was born just outside Paris, and st ...

. Meanwhile, he went through the museums of Paris, copying the classics. During this time, he gave up the

Academicism Academic art, academicism, or academism, is a style of painting and sculpture produced under the influence of European academies of art. This method extended its influence throughout the Western world over several centuries, from its origins i ...

of his early years and embraced Realism. He was also heavily influenced by the works of

Édouard Manet Édouard Manet (, ; ; 23 January 1832 – 30 April 1883) was a French Modernism, modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism (art movement), R ...

and

Eugène Delacroix Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix ( ; ; 26 April 1798 – 13 August 1863) was a French people, French Romanticism, Romantic artist who was regarded as the leader of the French Romantic school.Noon, Patrick, et al., ''Crossing the Channel: ...

. After his family's ability to provide financial assistance was exhausted, Cabanel and Fleury were sufficiently impressed with his abilities to petition

Queen Isabella II Isabella II (, María Isabel Luisa de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904) was Queen of Spain from 1833 until her deposition in 1868. She is the only queen regnant in the history of unified Spain. Isabella wa ...

(who visited Paris in 1865) to provide a stipend so Gómez could continue his studies. Unfortunately, the petition was dismissed on the grounds that too many stipends had already been given, so he and Enric had to return to Spain. After a few years in Barcelona, they lived in Madrid for a year and a half, where Simó frequented the

Museo del Prado The Museo del Prado ( ; ), officially known as Museo Nacional del Prado, is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It houses collections of Art of Europe, European art, dating from the 12th century to the early 20th ce ...

, copying the masters. He received several commissions at that time, including a project to decorate the Palace of the , together with the painter

José Marcelo Contreras José Marcelo Contreras y Muñoz (16 January 1827 – 1890/92) was a Spanish painter and art professor. Largely remembered as a History painting, painter of historical scenes, he also created portraits and Genre art, genre works. Biography He was ...

. Upon returning home, he opened a studio in the

Poble Sec (; ) is a neighborhood in the Sants-Montjuïc district of Barcelona, Catalonia (Spain). The neighborhood is located between Montjuïc mountain and the Avinguda del Paral·lel. It covers around 70 hectares. The Poble Sec station of the Barcelona ...

district, which served as a meeting place for the local art community.

Lluís Graner Lluís Graner i Arrufí, or Arrufat in Spanish (5 February 1863–7 May 1929) was a Spaniards, Spanish painter in the Realism (art), Realistic style, artistic director and theater entrepreneur. After achieving notable success in painting, he ...

Josep Cusachs José Cusachs y Cusachs (19 July 1851, Montpellier – 1908, Barcelona) was a Spanish soldier and painter. Biography He was born in France, while his parents were travelling, but spent most of his life in the area between Barcelona and Mataró ...

and

Joan Brull Joan Brull i Vinyoles (25 January 1863 – 3 February 1912) was a Catalan painter active in the late 19th century. He was a Catalan symbolist painter, along with other artists including Adrià Gual, Josep Maria Tamburini, and Alexandre de Riquer. ...

were among those who had their first art lessons there. In 1874, he presented his painting ''Arrepentimiento de Judas'' (''The Repentance of Judas'') as part of his application for a professorship at the Escola de la Llotja, but

Antoni Caba Antoni Caba i Casamitjana (1838 – 25 January 1907) was a Spanish painter who worked in the Realistic style and is best known for his portraits. Biography Antoni Caba was born in Barcelona. He attended the Escola de la Llotja during the 185 ...

was chosen for the position instead. Gómez died in Barcelona, aged 34, from unspecified causes.

References

External links

Arcadja Auctions: More works by Gómez
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gomez, Simo 1845 births 1880 deaths Painters from Barcelona 19th-century Spanish painters 19th-century Spanish male artists Spanish male painters

Biography

References

Further reading

External links