Julio Vila y Prades facts for kids
Julio Vila y Prades (born April 9, 1873, in Valencia, Spain – died July 9, 1930, in Barcelona, Spain) was a talented Spanish artist. He was known for his paintings and large wall murals. He also created many artworks in countries across Latin America.
Biography
Julio Vila y Prades loved art from a young age. Even though his parents wanted him to do something else, he started studying art. He went to the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Carlos in Valencia. There, he learned from famous artists like Francisco Domingo Marqués and Joaquín Agrasot.
Later, he moved to Madrid. From 1893 to 1904, he worked as an assistant in the studio of Joaquín Sorolla. Sorolla was a very well-known Spanish painter.
Julio often showed his art at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts in Spain. He received special mentions in 1892 and 1897. In 1904, he won a medal for his painting, On Rice. That same year, he traveled to Paris, France, to study art for a short time at the Académie Julian.
Travels and Murals
Julio wanted to visit South America. His friend Sorolla helped him connect with José Artal, a businessman and art supporter in Buenos Aires, Argentina. With Artal's help, Julio traveled to Argentina. He painted many landscapes and everyday scenes of life on the pampas, which are large grasslands. He returned to Europe in 1906. He spent time in Brittany, France, and then visited Madrid. There, he drew pictures at the wedding of King Alfonso XIII.
In 1908, after his mother passed away, Julio went back to Buenos Aires. He married Carmen Artal, José Artal's daughter. She was fifteen years younger than him. For the next few years, Julio traveled all over Argentina. He received many important jobs to create decorative art. These included painting the ceiling at the Tigre Club and murals at the Plaza Hotel. He also painted murals at the Tucumán Government Palace. Besides these large projects, he painted many portraits of people.
Julio and his family planned to move to Paris. However, World War I started, so they settled in San Sebastián, Spain, instead. Even so, Julio kept traveling for his art. He worked in New York City, Havana (Cuba), Caracas (Venezuela), and Mexico City.
He returned to Spain in 1921. He painted the ceiling of the new Gran Kursaal de San Sebastián, which is no longer standing. After that, he went to Peru. He made sketches there for a large mural about the Battle of Ayacucho. This mural was meant for the new Bolivarian Museum in Caracas. In 1924, he was in San Francisco, USA. There, he painted a ceiling mural called The Apotheosis of the California Soldier for a theater at the Legion of Honor museum.
In 1928, Julio moved his art studio to Barcelona. This allowed his wife to be closer to her family. That same year, the government of Peru gave him the Order of the Sun of Peru, a special award. However, the mural they had asked him to paint was not finished when he died two years later.
Selected paintings
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Spanish Woman with a Mantilla (a traditional Spanish lace veil)
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Boy with Oranges
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Woman with Dog
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Army of the Andes Crossing the Cordillera (mountains)
See also
In Spanish: Julio Vila y Prades para niños
