As a result of the agreement between the Banco Sabadell Art Collection and the National Art Museum of Catalonia, the works Portrait of Ramon Casas on a bicycle by Santiago Rusiñol and Kids reading (Francesc and Josep) by Francesc Gimeno will now be exhibited in the Modern Art galleries of the museum.
Portrait of Ramon Casas on a bicycle, also known as Ramon Casas, velocipedist, is one of the greatest portraits of Rusiñol, in which he immortalises his friend and fellow painter. This high-quality and unique work brings together two pioneers of turn-of-the-century artistic modernity. Casas was in his early twenties and was seen as one of the artists of the future. Rusiñol paints him in a decadent environment, alongside his bicycle, wearing sports clothes, showing the image of the modern artist. The painting was exhibited in the Sala Parés in 1889 and received many praises, but also criticism for the carelessness of the environment, not in line with the taste of the time.
The portrait is a very important contribution to the Modern Art galleries of MNAC and is exhibited alongside the mythical work that Casas created in 1897 to preside over the walls of Els Quatre Gats: The Tandem, where he appears in a self-portrait with Pere Romeu on a two-seater bicycle.
On the other hand, the work Kids reading (Francesc and Josep), of 1906-1908, is one of the most iconic creations of Gimeno, one of his best domestic interiors, quite possibly the most important theme of his creations, along with self-portraits. In this painting, Gimeno portrays two of his sons, Francesc and Josep and, in line with other similar interiors, combines the humility of the space with a tender look at childhood. Francesc and Josep were born in 1899 and 1901, respectively, and would be the subject of other portraits, but this one of them together is one of the most important.
This deposit is a further step in the Banco Sabadell Art Collection’s collaboration with MNAC, which this year has also resulted in the ID Project exhibition, featuring photographs by Jordi Bernadó that belong to the Banco Sabadell Art Collection.
