The Gardens of Aranjuez - White Spain

At the other end of this room you will find a number of works which, in the wake of Symbolism, are located at the opposite end of the spectrum as far as aesthetics and subject matter are concerned, such as those by Santiago Rusiñol, which also show a preference for landscapes, light and nature.

Look at this picture by Rusiñol, entitled “The Gardens of Aranjuez”. It shows a pathway seen in perspective and surrounded by flowers. This well-known painter and writer was a forefather of Catalan Modernism and a contemporary of Zuloaga and Ramón Casas. He painted the light and vitality of a shady garden, splashed with flowers and colour. The light is quite Mediterranean. It reflects an optimistic, happy view of things, as opposed to the dark scenes of Black Spain, which focused on the sometimes oppressive religious nature of inland Castile.

The works of Darío de Regoyos are typical of the Impressionist fondness for painting light. Here you can see the picture “The Chicken Coop”, in which the brushstrokes depict the details of a landscape with painstaking prettiness. The bright light is reflected on the trees and on the clothes hanging out to dry. Some lithographs on Black Spain by the same artist are also on display here, so you can see how a single artist has represented these two Symbolist views of Spain.

(c) (R) 2012, MUSMon com S.L.