Alberto Gironella facts for kids

Alberto Gironella (born September 26, 1929 – died August 2, 1999) was a talented Mexican painter. He was born in Mexico City and learned to paint all by himself.

Gironella's art was greatly shaped by the world around him in Mexico. His paintings were shown in many countries, like Brazil, the United States, Spain, France, Japan, Sweden, and Switzerland. In Mexico, you could find his works in famous places like the Palace of Fine Arts and the Museum of Modern Art.

He also drew pictures for the book Terra Nostra by Carlos Fuentes. In 1960, he won important awards. These included the first prize at the Paris Biennial for Young Painters and the first prize at the Sixth Biennial of São Paulo, Brazil.

Later in his life, Gironella even painted the American singer Madonna. He thought she was more than just a pop star; he saw her as a surrealist artist herself. The Museum of Contemporary Art, Monterrey says his Madonna paintings began in 1991. Alberto Gironella left behind many amazing artworks. His son, Emiliano Garcia, continues to share his father's art, especially the "Las Meninas" series.

His Life Story

Alberto Gironella's father was an immigrant from Catalonia, Spain, and his mother was from an indigenous background. He was married to Carmen Parra, who was also a Mexican painter. They had a son named Emiliano Gironella.

Carmen Parra is still an artist today. Their son, Emiliano, has followed in his father's footsteps. He not only shares his father's art and legacy but has also become an artist himself. Gironella was known for being very independent in his art and life. He was often described as serious and private. He spent a lot of time at his home near Mexico City. He also gave his artworks to causes he believed in.

How He Started in Art

Gironella first studied Spanish Literature at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. He graduated in 1959. He loved poetry and writing. He even wrote his first and only novel, Tiburcio Esquila.

However, he couldn't find a publisher for his book, so his writing career was short. After this, Gironella began his journey to become a famous painter. Since he studied literature, he never had formal art lessons. He learned everything about painting on his own. Even though his book wasn't published, he kept his love for writing alive. He helped start a newspaper called La Jornada in 1984, where he often shared his art.

His Art Career

Gironella wanted to express his artistic talent beyond writing, so he started painting. He quickly became successful, winning an award at the Paris Biennial for Young Painters in 1960. At that time, much of the popular art in Mexico, like the Mexican Muralism Movement, had strong political messages.

But Gironella chose a different path. He did not want his art to be about politics. Instead, he was very interested in surrealism and old-style portraits called baroque portraiture. Soon after finding his unique painting style, Gironella helped create an exciting new art gallery called Galería Prisse. He started it with other Mexican artists, Vlady Kibalchich Rusakov and Héctor Xavier.

Galería Prisse was important because it challenged the political art of the time. Even so, Gironella sometimes faced criticism and questions about his style. Today, his son, Emiliano Gironella, continues to share his father's artwork. In 2008, his art was shown in a special exhibition in Barcelona called "Forgetting Velázquez. The Meninas." His paintings were displayed alongside works by his favorite artists, Picasso, Velázquez, and Goya.

Art Style: Surrealism

Gironella was inspired by popular Surrealist artists in Mexico. He also found ideas from some well-known artists of the Mexican Muralism movement, like David Alfaro Siqueiros and Diego Rivera. Surrealism is very different from the political muralist movement. However, Gironella felt that both styles helped him push creative limits.

Even though he supported liberal political ideas, Gironella believed art should not be political. He thought art should show what's in our subconscious mind, like dreams and hidden thoughts. By rejecting political art, Gironella became fascinated by surrealism. Surrealism aimed to create art that showed the power of the unconscious mind. This was the opposite of the Mexican Muralism Movement.

Gironella's love for this colorful, dream-like style came from his childhood memories. He remembered making altars with chocolate wrappers, shiny tins, and bottles from his family's grocery store. This special inspiration also came from his love for Leonora Carrington's surrealism, which came to the Americas in the 1940s. He was also friends with the filmmaker Luis Buñuel.

Gironella's deep dive into surrealism caught the eye of the famous French Surrealist artist Andre Breton. When Gironella had his first solo art show in Paris in 1961, Breton was very impressed. He said Gironella's passion proved that surrealism was still strong in the art world. However, Gironella didn't see himself as only a surrealist artist. He said he was also a baroque artist and that labels weren't really needed. This shows how unique his style was. Gironella's art has left a lasting impact on many artists and art lovers worldwide.

Art Style: Baroque Influence

People often called Gironella a surrealist artist, but he didn't like his work to be limited to just one style. He believed his art was just as much Baroque as it was surrealist. Gironella called this mix of art styles "mestizo." This word means a blend of Indigenous and European influences.

He mainly focused on Spanish Baroque paintings from the 16th and 17th centuries, especially court portraits. Many artists at the time found it hard to categorize Gironella as a Mexican Surrealist. Some, like Mexican art historian Ida Rodríguez Prampolini, even called him an "international artist" instead. It's important to remember that Gironella used more than just surrealism. Baroque style also influenced him. He would take famous Spanish artworks and rework them in his own way, adding surrealist touches.

What His Art Looked Like

Gironella's unique blend of surrealism and baroque style can be seen in his artworks. He often painted subjects like court portraits and symbolic images of death. This special art is said to be Gironella's way of bringing together Mexico's past and present. It shows the history of Mexico being colonized by the Spanish monarchy.

His colonial approach was influenced by his favorite artists, such as Francisco Goya, El Greco, and Diego Velázquez. All these artists lived during the time of Mexico's colonization. Even though some people didn't see Gironella as a truly Mexican artist, he often disagreed. He believed that denying the influence of Spanish and European cultures on Mexico would mean ignoring a big part of Mexico's identity.

His Lasting Impact

In an interview about Alberto Gironella's work being shown in the "Forgetting Velázquez. The Meninas" exhibition in Barcelona, his son, Emiliano Gironella, was happy. He saw that his father's work continues to be loved by artists and fans everywhere. Emiliano believes his father's work should make all Mexicans proud.

However, he also expressed some sadness that there isn't yet a museum in Mexico dedicated only to his father's art. Despite this, Emiliano and his mother, Carmen Parra, keep lending Gironella's paintings to museums and galleries in other countries. This helps to keep his artistic legacy alive for everyone to see.

Where His Art Was Shown

Alberto Gironella's art has been shown in many places around the world. Here are some of the exhibitions:

• Contemporary Drawings from Latin America, The Renaissance Society, University of Chicago, Illinois (1959)
• Alberto Gironella of Mexico, Art Museum of the Americas (AMA), Washington, DC (1959)
• Alberto Gironella, Televisa, Museo de Arte Moderno (MAM), Mexico City, Mexico (1976)
• Images of Mexico: The Contribution of Mexico to 20th Century Art, Dallas Museum of Art (DMA), Texas (1988)
• Puerta a la Eternidad Día de Muertos, Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, Chicago, Illinois (2000)
• Distorted Forms: Artist from La Raptura, Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA), Long Beach, California (2013-2014)
• Pas de mur pour l’art!, Galerie Thessa Herold, Paris, France (2017)
• Pop América, McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, Texas (2018-2019)
• Pop América, Nasher Museum, San Antonio, Texas (2019)
• Pop América, Block Museum, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois (2019)
• Twist and Roundabouts Around Surrealism, National Museum of Art of Romania, European Art Gallery (2019-2020)
• Alberto Gironella, Permanent Collection "Al Alimón", Museo Nacional Centro de Arte – Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain
• Chronicle of an Instant: Dark Section (Night), Museo de las Artes de la Universidad de Guadalajara (Permanent Online Exhibition)
• Permanent Collection, Alberto Gironella "El Gloton", Art Museum of the Americas (AMA), Washington, DC.

See also

In Spanish: Alberto Gironella para niños