Looking at Josep M. Pinto's paintings in his Barcelona studio --that we can
now also watch at the Rusiñol Gallery, in Sant Cugat del Vallés-- it comes
to my memory the assay by Pere Corominas Elogi del paisatge català (A
gloss on Catalan landscapes), where he points out that while atmospheric
changes do occur here as everywhere else, here they turn into something
peculiar with its own finesse and rhythm. And I might even borrow what he
also wrote to add that, if I was only given three words to define it, I
would say that these landscapes are subtle, gentle and glowing.
Subtlety in the way it progresses, gentleness towards the milieu and glow to
make any habitual scenery become inspiring are virtues I can discover in the
works of this artist who, despite the years he has spent in this art, does
not still enjoy the public recognition he deserves. Teaching art at the Escola Massana, where he has merited a well earned praise from both colleagues and students, has forced him to sort of defer to a lesser place the always difficult experience of organizing periodical exhibitions. He has indeed exhibited his paintings, with remarkable success too, in different places in Catalonia as well as in some other locations in Spain
and Europe; but he has done it in a way I would consider as prompt and shy,
as if afraid of displaying before others the concentration and spotlessness
which he goes through while drawing and painting the Nature's harmony as a
manifestation of our human feelings.
I must confess that his works have constituted an eye-opener for me, for I
did not know them. I only hope that this exhibition may be for Josep M.
Pinto the needed prod to increase his presence in the world of art
galleries.
Born in Barcelona in 1947, Josep M. Pinto is however a typical empordanès (from Empordà, a northern Catalonian region) by his own choice. Cadaqués,
Llançà, Peralada and Garriguella, amongst other sites, captured his heart
and mind while a child so he always remembers –and I borrow again from Pere
Corominas- the beauties of Empordà. This is what allows him to deepen in the
lights of his Barcelona studio, while going to places like Venice and
Majorca. For he travels with those truths and essences inherited from his
chosen roots, which allow him to have and generously love other
surroundings.
Josep Mª Cadena
Go to the painter's exhibition
|
|
