Álvaro Alcalá Galiano y Vildósola, conde del Real Aprecio (21 May 1873,

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

- 27 November 1936,

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

) was a Spanish painter and decorative artist.

Biography

He was born to an old, aristocratic family and held several titles, including , Mayordomo de Semana for King

Alfonso XIII Alfonso XIII (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Alfonso León Fernando María Jaime Isidro Pascual Antonio de Borbón y Habsburgo-Lorena''; French language, French: ''Alphonse Léon Ferdinand Marie Jacques Isidore Pascal Antoine de Bourbon''; 17 May ...

, and Maestrante of the . His first art teachers were and Adolfo Guiard.Biography
@ Arteder While he was still quite young, he went to Paris with the intention of studying under

Léon Bonnat Léon Joseph Florentin Bonnat (; 20 June 1833 – 8 September 1922) was a French painter, Grand Officer of the Légion d'honneur, art collector and professor at the Ecole des Beaux Arts. Early life Bonnat was born in Bayonne, but from 1846 to 1853 ...

. Nevertheless, his parents had the final word, so he returned to study in Madrid, in the studios of José Jiménez Aranda then, later, with

Joaquín Sorolla Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida (27 February 1863 – 10 August 1923) was a Spanish painter. Sorolla excelled in the painting of portraits, landscapes, and monumental works of social and historical themes. His most typical works are characterized by ...

, who considered him to be one of his best students.Biography
@ 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 ...

In 1902, he took an extended trip to

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

, the Netherlands, and Germany, to find subject matter for his works and expand his stylistic repertoire. He would come to focus on genre and

costumbrista ''Costumbrismo'' (in Catalan: ''costumisme''; sometimes anglicized as costumbrism, with the adjectival form costumbrist) is Literary costumbrismo, the literary or pictorial interpretation of local everyday life, mannerisms, and customs, primari ...

scenes, although he was also known for landscapes and murals. He participated in the National Exhibition of Fine Arts on several occasions; acquiring Third Class prizes in 1897 and 1899, a Second Class prize in 1901 and, finally, a First Class prize in 1920 for his painting "La Senda" (The Path, or The Way). He was awarded a bronze medal at the

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...

of 1910, and a Grand Prize at the International Exposition of Panama in 1916. His murals may be seen at the Biscay Foral Delegation Palace, the former headquarters of the Ministry of the Navy, and the Palace of Justice, as well as several private residences. In addition, he was one of the organizers for expositions in

and

San Sebastián San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...

, and served as President of the . He also wrote art criticism under the pseudonym, Juan de Eguía. In the early days of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, he was arrested by the Republican faction and executed by firing squad, during the

Paracuellos massacres The Paracuellos massacres () were a series of mass killings of civilians and prisoners of war by the Republican faction of the Spanish Civil War that took place before and during the Siege of Madrid during the early stages of the war. The deat ...

Selected paintings

File:Alcala-Sardines.jpg, Cleaning Sardines File:Alcala-Path.jpg, The Path File:Alcala-Fruit.jpg, Fruit Sellers File:Álvaro Alcala Galiano.jpg, After the Grape Harvest

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alcala Galiano y Vildosola, Alvaro 1873 births 1936 deaths Basque painters Spanish genre painters Spanish muralists 19th-century Spanish nobility People executed by Spain by firing squad People killed by the Second Spanish Republic