The online collection and picture sale
Vase with Bananas, Lemons and Books
Echevarría, Juan de
Bilbao, 14/04/1875-Madrid, 08/07/1931
Oil on canvas
125.5 x 104 cm
Echevarría (bottom right hand corner)
c. 1917
First quarter of the 20th century
82/120
Acquired in 1962
Alongside portraiture and landscape painting, the still life was one of Echevarría's favourite genres, and over the course of his career he barely introduced variations either in his choice or in his arrangement of the motifs-vases filled with flowers, books, fabrics, prints or paintings by artists he admired. The vase, usually made of pottery and potbellied, was a key feature in his compositions, both in the still lifes in which it was the only object depicted and in other more complex versions. In this work on a table covered in a decorative cloth the artist has placed a jar filled with chrysanthemums, pansies and other flowers, and a fruit bowl filled with lemons. These motifs are surrounded by books, notebooks, other pieces of fruit, as well as embroidered and patterned fabrics. The latter divide the composition diagonally in two, favouring the organisation of the spatial planes that succeed one another, starting from the pile of books in the lower right corner, all the way to the rear wall decorated with floral wallpaper on which hangs a print. The motley composition presents a chromatic unity based on different shades of blue and violet.
Although he trained as an industrial engineer, in 1902 Echevarría decided to become a painter. The following year he travelled with Iturrino to Paris, where he met Durrio and discovered the work of Cézanne, Gauguin and Van Gogh. He exhibited to great acclaim at the Salons d'Automne of 1911 and 1912 and then travelled throughout Europe before returning permanently to Spain in 1914. Echevarría painted in Andalusia and Castile, portraying marginalised characters and producing an oeuvre close to the intellectual and moral concerns of the Generation of '98 movement. As a portraitist he made likenesses of practically all the intellectuals, writers and artists linked to this literary group. [Miriam Alzuri]
Selected bibliography
- Bengoechea, Javier de. Catálogo de arte moderno y contemporáneo del Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao. Bilbao, Banco de Vizcaya, 1980. p. 51. (Con el título Florero con plátanos, limones y libros).
- "Cuales fueron los dieciseis cuadros enviados por los rojos al Extranjero, otros trece han sido encontrados en el Carlton", Hierro. 28 de septiembre de 1937. p. 3.
- 50 ans d'art espagnol, 1880-1936 [Cat. exp.]. Bordeaux, Galerie des Beaux-Arts, 1984. p. 105, n° cat. 35.
- Tesoros del Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : pintura, 1400-1939 [Cat. exp.]. Madrid, El Viso, 1989. pp. 176-177, n° cat. 71.
- Gerardo Diego : la literatura y el arte : en el centenario de su nacimiento [Cat. exp.]. Santillana del Mar, Fundación Santillana, 1996.
- La mirada del 98 : arte y literatura en la Edad de Plata [Cat. exp.]. Madrid, Ministerio de Educación y Cultura, 1998. pp. 204-205, n° cat. 124.
- De Picasso a Bacon : arte contemporáneo en las colecciones del Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao [Cat. exp.]. Segovia, Museo de Arte Contemporánea Esteban Vicente, 1999. pp. 50-51.
- Juan de Echevarría, 1875-1931 [Cat. exp.]. Madrid ; Bilbao, Fundación Mapfre ; Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2004. p. 125.
- Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : guía. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. p. 148.
- Musée des Beaux Arts de Bilbao : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. p. 148.
- Bilbao Fine Arts Museum : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. p. 148.
- Guía Artistas Vascos. Bilbao, Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2008. pp. 69-70.
- Gida Euskal Artistak. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Eder Museoa, 2008. p. 69.
- Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : guía. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2011. p. 148, n° cat. 104.
- L'Espagne entre deux siècles : de Zuloaga à Picasso [Cat. exp.]. Paris, Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 2011. pp. 108-109, n° cat. 46.
- Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa : gida. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2012. p. 148, n° cat. 104.
- Guide Basque Artists. Bilbao, Bilbao Fine Arts Museum, 2012. pp. 68-69, n° cat. 31a.
- González de Durana, Javier. Juan Echevarría. Madrid, Fundición Mapfre, 2014. p. 57, il.
- Musée des Beaux Arts de Bilbao : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. p. 148.
- Bilbao Fine Arts Museum : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. p. 148.
- Arte japonés y japonismo [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. pp. 34, 36, il.
- 110 Years 110 Works [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 216-217, sin n° cat.
- 110 Años 110 Obras [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 216-217, sin n° cat.
- 110 Ans 110 Oeuvres [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 216-217, sin n° cat.
- 110 Urte 110 Artelan [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 216-217, sin n° cat.
- Mendieta Echevarría, Verónica. Juan de Echevarría, 1875-1931 : biografía y catálogo razonado. Santander, Tantín Cantabria, 2020. pp. 152, 389, n° cat. 218.