Itinerary along Palma: 17. Anglada Camarassa, the school of Pollença and Dionís Bennàssar: the painting during the 20th century in Mallorca.

©Text i fotos: Àngel Gené i Ramis; traducció a l'anglès: Montserrat Casanovas i Stobart; suport informàtic: Martí Gené i Ramis

(pintorescatalanes.blogspot.com)

Hermenegild Anglada Camarassa (Barcelona 1871 - Pollença 1959) is a international famous painter. He was trained in Barcelona and from 1897 he was in touch with post impressionism in Paris.
His main features are symbolism, plain colours, simplifications, attraction for morbid issues, expression of the inner world and own moods, and use of prototypical evil women.
Other of his features are : loose brushwork, use of pure colours, perspective and chiaroscuro (typical impressionist characteristics) but also some restraint and austerity in his compositions, and some geometric shapes in the design of essential forms.
He started to live in Mallorca towards 1914. He left in 1936 and returned in 1948. In 1967, he created his own museum in Port of Pollença, from which his works were transferred to the Cultural Centre of La Caixa in 1988.

(quaderns.balearweb.net_violinscançódelesaguiles_1944)

Dionís Bennàssar (Mallorca 1905-1967) and the school of Pollença.
A great number of painters were influenced by the works of Anglada Camarassa, his students, while he was in Paris. Some of them will even follow him to Mallorca, such as Tito Cittadini, who had an great influence on the training of Dionís. All of them belonged to the so-called "school of Pollença". Bennàssar has also contacts with Russinyol or Mir (also painters from the "Colla del safrà", Gang of the Saffron, because of their intense use of the yellow colour.)

(www.museudionisbennassar.com_plçadepollença_1933)

During a first moment, 1926-1940, he was a scholar and academic, however, he changed, during 1940-50, expressing a much more modernist side following the steps of Anglada. During 1950-67, he became more personal in his paintings

(www.revistadearte.com_la-gata-rosa_1908)

There was an important movement of painters from all around the world who came to Mallorca and influenced the flow of intellectuals and tourists on the island. They will foster modernity and they will stimulate the appearance of important local painters, such as Bennasar or Antoni Gelabert. This bohemian atmosphere of intellectuals and foreign artists was brilliantly portrayed by Llorenç Villalonga in his novels.