Isidre Nonell i Monturoil (1872-1911)

Works

Designs:
Women of the bed
Reading
Seating woman

Pictures:

Landscapes:
Arenys de mar
Capvespre a S. Martí de
Provençals
Penguin beach

Nature morte: (12)

Portraits:
Assumpció (2)
Blanca
Bust de dona
Cantant de cabaret
Consol
Doloretes
Dolors
Estudis (Various)
Figura reclinada
Flores
La Sol
L’espera
Lola (2)

Series:
Els cretins de Boí
Gitanes (Gypsy women):
Abatiment
Amparo
Angustias
Dones (Various)
Dues gitanes (2)
Estudi (Various)
Figura (Various)
Gitana (Various)
Gitana amb mantó
Gitana jove
Gitana vella
Gitana vermella
Gitanes al Somorrostro
Gitaneta
Gitano (Various)
Gitanos
Innocència
La Chata
La Joana
La Manuela
La Paloma
La venedora d’ocells
Lassitud
Malenconia
Maruja
Meditació
Misèria
Niebit
Parella de gitanos
Pura, la gitana
Qui caurà
Repòs
Rosario
Rumiant

Social themes;
Captaire cec
Demanant caritat
Misèria
Nit de Nadal
Pobres esperant la sopa
Pobreteria
Repatriat de Cuba al moll
Repòs
Sagristà fent caritat
Una buscona

Other themes:
The bourgeois

Life

Isidre Nonell i Monturiol was born in Barcelona in the year 1872.
Isidre Nonell was fundamentally a self-taught painter. Nevertheless he was also the pupil of Josep Mirabent, Martinez Altès academy and Lluís Graner. He also was a pupil of Llotja school in Barcelona.
Nonell work is characterized in it’s youth by the happiness and very rich and hot colors together with an intense but sober aesthetic inspired in Art Nouveau and impressionism. This is the character of his paintings when he was a part of the Colla del Safrà -together with other painters as Canals, Vallmitjana, Gosé, Torner, Torres García, Adrià Gual, Joaquim Mir and others- between 1893 and 1896 (Colla del Safrà is a Catalan expression meaning group of saffron, referring to the color of that product used by his members in its paintings).
Before his first travel to Paris in 1886 Nonell developed his series of “Els cretins de Boí” (The cretinous of Boí), Nonell was essentially interested by marginal, alone and silk people, gypsy women and other poor people in similar attitudes. Nonell pay attention to the sad face of the reality, the reverse of the social ideals of burgess society, forcing with that attitude the general misunderstanding and potential customers refusal.
In 1887 he left to Paris where he took part in some exhibitions together with other painters. In his second stage in Paris between 1899 and 1900 he was strongly influenced by the impressionism.
In 1907 Nonell, following Utrillo suggestions, made an anthological exhibition in Barcelona in an other style, representing women with beautiful dresses, showing a more sensual look of feminine universe. The big success of that exhibition nevertheless, was ephemeral and Nonell came again to his traditional style.
Nonell was an excellent designer. Out of his normal themes (see the three paintings), he also was a collaborator of satiric magazine “Papitu” from 1908.
In 1910, Nonell developed his twelve pictures on “nature morte” themes.
Nonell died as a consequence of a typhus at the young age of 38 in 1911.

Images

 
(L to R)
Woman of the bed
Seating woman
Reading

Other Catalan Art Nouveau Painters

-Hermen ANGLADA i Camarassa -Joan BRULL i Vinyoles -Ricard Canals -Agapit Casas i Abarca -Ramón CASAS i Carbó -Josep CUSACHS -Manuel Cusí
-Xavier Gosé i Rovira -Sebastiá Junyent -Joan Llimona i Bruguera -Josep Maria Marqués -Francesc MASRIERA i Manovens -Josep MASRIERA I Manovens -Lluis MASRIERA i Rosés -Eliseu MEIFRÈN i Roig -Joaquim MIR i Trinxet -Francesc Miralles -Isidre NONELL i Monturiol -Marià PIDELASERRA i Brias -Josep Pinós i Comes -Josep Reynés -Alexandre Riquer i Ynglada -Pau Roig i Sisa -Santiago RUSIÑOL i Prats -Antoni Serra i Fiter -Josep Maria Tamburini -Modest Urgell -Miquel UTRILLO i Morlius -Lluïsa VIDAL i Puig -Pere Ysern i Alié