Antonio Saura Spanish, 1930-1998

Antonio Saura was one of the most important Spanish painters of the post-war period and a leading figure in the development of expressive abstraction. Born in Huesca, he was largely self-taught and began exhibiting his work during the 1950s. His early interest in Surrealism gradually developed into a highly personal form of gestural painting. Saura's works are often dominated by black and white, with energetic brushwork transforming the human figure into distorted and powerful forms. Portraits, bodies and female figures became recurring subjects throughout his career. Rather than attempting to reproduce physical appearance, he used fragmentation and deformation to explore psychological and emotional states. In 1957, he founded the El Paso group in Madrid alongside several other major Spanish avant-garde artists. His work challenged the restrained aesthetics of the period and helped establish a new language for Spanish painting. Saura also worked extensively in drawing, printmaking and writing. His intense and uncompromising approach has secured his place among the major European painters of the second half of the twentieth century.