Joan-Josep Tharrats
Encyclopedia
Joan-Josep Tharrats i Vidal (Girona
1918 - Barcelona
2001) was a Catalan
painter, art theorist and publisher.
Born in an industralist family, his father was the businessman and poet Josep Tharrats i Vilà. From 1932 to 1935 he lived in Béziers
, before relocating to Barcelona
where he studied at the Escola Massana. The Spanish Civil War
brought his studies to an end, and he wouldn't resume his art career until 1942. His initial style was akin to Impressionism
but moved into abstraction
as the influence of Piet Mondrian
and Vassili Kandinsky became more important to him. From 1946 on he used collage techniques. In 1947 he was introduced to artists Arnau Puig Grau, Joan Ponç, Modest Cuixart, Antoni Tàpies
, Joan Brossa
and Josep Vicenç Foix
at the Institut Français in Barcelona. With some of these artists he founded the group Dau al Set
, which published the magazine of the same name, printed in his atelier.
He was one of the most visible artists in the local avantgarde art of the post-war years. His style evolved from lineal abstraction influenced by surrealism
(during his Dau al Set years) towards Art Informel working with texture, color and graphism. His work also includes a variety of posters, books, murals, stained glass, mosaics, jewelry and opera scenography. També va fer cartells, il·lustrà llibres i va fer murals, vitralls, mosaics, joies i fins i tot escenografies d'òpera (Spleen de 1984).
He had an individual exhibition in 1949 at the El Jardín gallery in Barcelona and became one of the most important Catalan artists in the international scene. From 1954 onwards he became a fixture of the Sala Gaspar in Barcelona and from 1955 in Stockholm
and New York
. In 1959 his work was exhibited at the 5th São Paulo Biennale and at the Venice Biennale
of 1960 and 1964. In 1966 he founded the Associació d'Artistes Actuals. In 2009 a traveling exhibition called "Les maculatures de Tharrats" was organised by the Diputació de Barcelona.
Girona
Girona is a city in the northeast of Catalonia, Spain at the confluence of the rivers Ter, Onyar, Galligants and Güell, with an official population of 96,236 in January 2009. It is the capital of the province of the same name and of the comarca of the Gironès...
1918 - Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
2001) was a Catalan
Catalan people
The Catalans or Catalonians are the people from, or with origins in, Catalonia that form a historical nationality in Spain. The inhabitants of the adjacent portion of southern France are sometimes included in this definition...
painter, art theorist and publisher.
Born in an industralist family, his father was the businessman and poet Josep Tharrats i Vilà. From 1932 to 1935 he lived in Béziers
Béziers
Béziers is a town in Languedoc in southern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the Hérault department. Béziers hosts the famous Feria de Béziers, centred around bullfighting, every August. A million visitors are attracted to the five-day event...
, before relocating to Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
where he studied at the Escola Massana. The Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
brought his studies to an end, and he wouldn't resume his art career until 1942. His initial style was akin to Impressionism
Impressionism
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement that originated with a group of Paris-based artists whose independent exhibitions brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s...
but moved into abstraction
Abstract art
Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th century, underpinned by the logic of perspective and an...
as the influence of Piet Mondrian
Piet Mondrian
Pieter Cornelis "Piet" Mondriaan, after 1906 Mondrian , was a Dutch painter.He was an important contributor to the De Stijl art movement and group, which was founded by Theo van Doesburg. He evolved a non-representational form which he termed Neo-Plasticism...
and Vassili Kandinsky became more important to him. From 1946 on he used collage techniques. In 1947 he was introduced to artists Arnau Puig Grau, Joan Ponç, Modest Cuixart, Antoni Tàpies
Antoni Tàpies
Antoni Tàpies i Puig, 1st Marquess of Tàpies is a Catalan painter. He is one of the most famous European artists of his generation. After studying law for 3 years, he devoted himself from 1943 onwards only to his painting...
, Joan Brossa
Joan Brossa
Joan Brossa i Cuervo Joan Brossa i Cuervo Joan Brossa i Cuervo (Barcelona, Catalonia,(1919–1998) was a Catalan poet in the Catalan language, playwright, graphic designer and plastic artist. He was one of the founders of both the group and the publication known as Dau-al-Set (1948) and one of the...
and Josep Vicenç Foix
Josep Vicenç Foix
Josep Vicenç Foix i Mas was a Catalan poet, writer, and essayist. He usually signed his work by using the abbreviation J.V. Foix.- Biography :...
at the Institut Français in Barcelona. With some of these artists he founded the group Dau al Set
Dau al Set
Dau al Set , the first post-World War II artistic movement in Catalonia, was founded in Barcelona in October 1948 by poet Joan Brossa. The avant-garde group had connections to the Surrealist and Dadaist movements and stressed the importance of both the conscious and unconscious in their works...
, which published the magazine of the same name, printed in his atelier.
He was one of the most visible artists in the local avantgarde art of the post-war years. His style evolved from lineal abstraction influenced by surrealism
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
(during his Dau al Set years) towards Art Informel working with texture, color and graphism. His work also includes a variety of posters, books, murals, stained glass, mosaics, jewelry and opera scenography. També va fer cartells, il·lustrà llibres i va fer murals, vitralls, mosaics, joies i fins i tot escenografies d'òpera (Spleen de 1984).
He had an individual exhibition in 1949 at the El Jardín gallery in Barcelona and became one of the most important Catalan artists in the international scene. From 1954 onwards he became a fixture of the Sala Gaspar in Barcelona and from 1955 in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
and New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. In 1959 his work was exhibited at the 5th São Paulo Biennale and at the Venice Biennale
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
of 1960 and 1964. In 1966 he founded the Associació d'Artistes Actuals. In 2009 a traveling exhibition called "Les maculatures de Tharrats" was organised by the Diputació de Barcelona.