Jose

Vives-Atsara The Abstract Collection

All text by Gabriel Diego Delgado, unless otherwise noted.

All photography courtesy of J.R. Mooney Galleries of Fine Art

© 2014 JR Mooney Galleries

Cover Image: “Abstract Village”, 30” x 24”,

Oil, $15,000.00

Jose Vives-Atsara was born in Vilafranca del Panades in

the Catalonian region of Spain on April 30, 1919. As a

small boy he loved to sketch with pencil and paper. He

began painting at the age of eleven. His first one man

show came at the age of fourteen. From that time on,

painting has been his love and his way of life...

Jose studied art at Saint Raymond College and the School of Fine Arts in Barce-

lona. He claimed that his most inspirational teacher was nature itself.

Mr. Vives-Atsara came to San Antonio in 1956. Within twenty years, he became

one of Texas\' most distinguished artists. His use of a palette knife in painting al-

lowed him to blend rich pure pigments into a powerful statement of color directly

on the canvas. This style produced works that are distinctively Vives-Atsara.

Jose is represented in such collections as the Museum of Modern Art, Spain;

Fort Worth Art Museum, Texas; His Royal Highness Juan Carlos, King of Spain;

the Vatican; the State Capitals of many southern states of the United States. His

work is also in many private collections in the United States,

Spain, Mexico and Venezuela.

For many years Jose was in great demand as a lecturer and teacher. He was

the Artist-In-Resident at Incarnate Word College, San Antonio, Texas. Although

Mr. Vives-Atsara studied with many well-known European teachers, he insisted

that he was continually learning about painting, and throughout his life his range

of subjects continued to grow.

The great intensity and character he captured from the people of Mexico, the

depth and strength of the colors in his floral, and his breathtaking Texas land-

scapes manifested an interest and acuteness of mood too infrequently found in

artists.

-excerpt from www.jrmooneygalleries.com

Landscapes have captured the attention of artists around the world for epochs. From the infamous Monet lily ponds to the Japanese mountain tapestries, our world has been the sur-

rounding force for a driven passion in fine art. Although land-scape painting is centuries old, painters have been a constant

in the field and capturing the moment. Abstract landscapes combine the artistic expressions of the artist with the solid

grounding of an intuitive understanding and cognitive recogni-tion of place, geography, horizon, sea, land and air.

-Gabriel Diego Delgado

Y

Yes, impressionistic landscape painting of the

1800s and early 1900s introduced modernist tenden-

cies including fauvism and aspects of cubism. How-

ever, with the standard horizon-line foreground, mid-

dle and background composition being the mainstay

of this particular aesthetic, there was always an un-

spoken integrity passed through the generations.

With abstract landscapes, we understand the poign-

ant properties of the terrain mixed with factual ele-

ment.

Texas landscape is no different; it’s a scenic sensi-

bility that continues to inspire. Historic pictorial con-

tributions to the Lone Star State can be traced back

to the late 1880s with the Onderdonk family and the

portrayal of the bluebonnet Texas hillsides. Salinas,

Wood, Arpe and the Harrisons all played an im-

portant role in Texas-inspired landscape painting.

But one thing they did not conquer was the con-

struct of abstract reference.

In the 1960s, San Antonio painter Jose

Vives-Atsara (1919 – 2004), an interna-

tionally recognized painter, dove into

landscape abstraction during a time

when abstract expressionism was in its

infancy. Highlights of his decades-long

artistic career include a city of San An-

tonio-initiated gift to Pope John Paul II

for the Vatican presented by Archbish-

op Patrick Flores in 1987 to painted

contributions within the art collection

of Juan Carlos, king of Spain.

His mastered palette knife technique

lent itself to bold color gestures, intui-

tive mark making and swatches of

bright and colorful hues bringing the

Texas, Mexican and Spanish land-

scapes to life.

“Known for his florals, landscapes and rendi-

tions of Texas scenes, Vives-Atsara made a

name during a time when artistic liberties

and abstract sensibilities were a far reach in

the genre of traditional landscape painting.” -G. Delgado

Image: “Wildflowers, 10” x 8”,

Oil, $4,250.00

F

For Vives-Atsara, one can only explore

personal aspects of his life to begin to un-

derstand a leap into a fray of abstraction.

To see inside the artist’s mind, you see a

world turned upside-down: international

relocation, a new job and a new house.

As a thriving art career began to unfold,

Vives-Atsara, who was already known for

his still lives, portraits, landscapes and

wildflowers, began to paint a series of

abstract landscapes with his signature 11

-color palette – a choice one might think

was reflective of the chaos of such

pesonal upheavals and distresses.

Image: “Abstract”, 30” x 24”, Oil,

$15,000.00

Image: “Abstract Land-

scape, 26” x 20”, Oil,

$13,500.00

Image: “Abstract Landscape”, 24” x 30”, Oil, $15,000.00

“Abstract Landscape,” by Vives-Atsara, illustrates this new exploration of intellectual ab-

straction. Closing in on the rocky pathway like some overgrown Tim Burton landscape, the

trees line the gauntlet, creating a foreboding effect on top of artistic mystification. Adding to

the mystery is the fact we do not know if Vives-Atsara is painting the Guadalupe River, the

Texas Hill Country, the Spanish countryside or the various seascapes that captured his atten-

tion.

“My using a palette knife – a spatula – happened accidently,” Vives-Atsara said. “The professors that taught me always used brushes. I experimented with the spatula, and I like the result; it added improved texture and spontaneity to my paintings. An art-ist must be educated in the standard techniques of painting, but there is no substitute for his personal daily experience and his mistakes.”

In Vives-Atsara’s work, we see the movement in which the work was created – the potent and

deliberate manipulation of color mixed with purposeful marks, gestures and highlights. With

quick whips with the palette knife, Vives-Atsara cuts into the paint, creating cactus with nee-

dle-like textural accents in select areas. Red, orange, blue and yellow swatches of color

dance across the composition. We begin to see the piecemeal landscape scene as our eyes

digest the familiar outlines of trees, rocks and path.

Right Image: “Abstract Village”, 24” x 30”, Oil, $15,000.00

Above Image: “Fall Landscape”, 20” x 26”, Oil, $13,500.00

Image: “Abstract Village”, 30” x 24”, Oil, $15,000.00

Image: “Cuevas del Drach”, 40”

x 30”, Oil, $22,000.00

A Delightful Duo of Unique

Cavernous Compositions of Cave Drach (Circa. 1962-1964)

Cuevas del Drach and Cave Mallorca, two large semi-abstract paintings by San Antonio painter, Jose Vives-

Atsara bring a unique underworld and cavernous depiction of hidden beauty; undoubtedly

an uncharacteristic subject matter in his internationally acclaimed body of work that spans 60 plus years.

Measuring an impressive 30 x 40”, the stalagmites and stalactites, or fringes of Manton, capture the seductive

secrets of this major international tourist attraction. Painted as a commission to one of his collectors spot-

lighting the Caves of Balearic Islands, on the east coast of Mallorca, Spain, these unique treasures blend Vives-

Atasara’s signature color palette with his sweeping but refined palette knife technique.

Cave Drach is an exquisite and exotic experience in its own right, host to one of the largest underground lakes

in the world complete with 10 minute orchestra concerts. However, coupled with the artistic prowess of

Vives-Atsara – the ethereal atmospheres draw us in, entering into a dark and sonorous milieu.

In these two paintings, the only pair ever done of this location by the artist, Vives-Atasa treats the subject in

relation to the background very different with alternating dark and light backgrounds. With a gloomy, shad-

owy and cryptic dullness in one, we are confronted by our own insecure-ness on continuing our journey fur-

ther into this superb subterranean while juxtaposing a purposefully lighted sensibility in the other, he guides

us with artistic generosity; illuminating and uncovering an unimaginable underworld.

Cuevas del Drach and Cave Mallorca are priced at $22,000 framed. These unusual and matchless paintings by

Jose Vives-Atsara are estimated to be painted sometime around 1962-1964. This timeframe would be reflec-

tive of his accession to celebrated lecture and instructor at Incarnate Word College, San Antonio Art League

and the Witte Memorial Museum; a major formative and important few years of an internationally celebrat-

ed career.

Only a few years later in 1968, his work was presented as gifts to Arnulfo Arias Madrid the President of Pana-

ma and Luis Pietri, the President of Venezuela.

© Gabriel Diego Delgado

Gallery Director

J.R. Mooney Galleries, Boerne

Image: “”Cave Mollorca”,

40” x 30”, Oil, $22,000.00