Madrid, Spain
Joaquin Sorolla
1863-1923
Spanish Impressionist
One of the overlooked treasures in Madrid is the House-Museum of Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida, Spain’s most famous impressionist painter. Born in Valencia, Spain, Sorolla married Clotilde García del Castillo in 1888, and moved to Madrid in 1890. She was the daughter of an art patron who preferred Sorolla’s painting to that of his own son and provided financial and moral support to get the young artist started. Clotilde and Joaquin had three children, two daughters and a son.
Like John Singer Sargent, Sorolla was primarily a portraitist, and his family figured prominently among his subjects. He loved the sea, particularly the coast of Valencia, and he returned there yearly to paint spectacular beach scenes, which captured the sunlight and sea in technicolor hues. He also painted famous historical figures, wealthy patrons, landscapes, and some political themes, although these latter never strayed into particularly fraught territory.
He achieved international renown and is displayed in prestigious museums throughout the world, but one of the best ways to see his art is to visit his home in the heart of Madrid. There, his house and studio are surrounded by a walled garden of sublime tranquility where the visitor is seamlessly transported to the life of an upper-class family at the turn of the 20th century.
The Property:
One of the many delightful spaces in the walled garden.
Looking toward the house, listening to the babbling fountain, it is hard to imagine we are in the heart of Madrid.
This interior patio exudes calm and brings natural light into the home while maintaining privacy. The blue and white tilework evokes Sorolla’s native Valencia.
Inside Sorolla’s Studio:
Beachside scenes from Valencia.
Another wall of beachside scenes from Valencia.
His paintbrush collection.
An interesting alcove.
Sorolla self-portraits:
Portraits of Clotilde:
Sorolla painted many, many pictures of his wife, Clotilde, to whom he wrote daily love notes, in one case describing how the love he felt for her surpassed the love he felt for their children. While he could be brutally realistic with other subjects, his paintings of Clotilde reflect the love and tenderness that he felt for her.
1895
Clotilde in a Gray Dress 1900
Clotilde Seated on the Sofa 1910
Clotilde in an Evening Dress 1910
The Sorolla children, María, Elena, and Joaquín.
My Children 1904
Girls at Sea
The Swimmer
People from the Roncal 1912
Washing the Horse 1909
Strolling along the Seashore 1909
The Nap 1901
The Pink Robe 1916
After Joaquín’s death, Clotilde left the family home and its paintings to the country of Spain. They represent his most intimate works, those that were not produced for commercial purposes but rather for the family’s enjoyment.
My only complaints about the exhibit would be that his best art is found elsewhere, and few pieces bear labels or other information so I had to do a bit of research and even then couldn’t find everything. Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the museum on this second visit there!
And unfortunately, our iPhones could not really do justice to this great artist. If you’d like to see more of his work, which spanned many more subjects and genres, there are many websites displaying his work. One I found helpful and easy to navigate is here. And another is here. And finally wikipedia. Enjoy!
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