Sorolla: Composition Genius
By Linda Riesenberg Fisler
One of my favorite discoveries has been Joaquin Sorolla. Joaquin Sorolla y Bastida was born in Valencia, Spain on February 27, 1863. He and his sister were quickly orphaned in 1865, both parents dying from what is speculated as cholera. The two children were then raised by their maternal aunt and uncle.
Receiving his initial art instruction at the age of fourteen in his hometown, he traveled to Madrid at the age of 18, where he studied Master paintings at the Museo del Prada. After his military service and at the age of 22, he received a grant which enabled 4 years of study in Rome, Italy. During this time, his study afforded him a sojourn to Paris in 1885, which gave him his first exposure to the influence of modern painting.
His first striking success was achieved with Another Marguerite (1892), which was awarded a gold medal at the National Exhibition in Madrid, then first prize at the Chicago International Exhibition. A turning point in Sorolla’s career was marked by the painting and exhibition of Sad Inheritance (1899), an extremely large canvas. The subject was a depiction of crippled children bathing at the sea in Valencia under the supervision of a monk. The polio epidemic that struck some years earlier in the land of Valencia is present, possibly for the first time in the history of painting, through the image of the two affected children. The painting earned Sorolla his greatest official recognition, the Grand Prix, and a medal of honor at the Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1900, and the medal of honor at the National Exhibition in Madrid in 1901.
Formal portraiture was not Sorolla’s genre preference; however, it was profitable for him. At the Taft Museum in Cincinnati, I enjoyed seeing a formal portrait of Taft painted by Sorolla. While amazing and rendered flawlessly, it surprised me to see that it was a Sorolla. I would never have guessed this, as the style differed from what I attribute to Sorolla. The appearance of sunlight could be counted on to rouse Sorolla’s interest, and it was outdoors where he found his ideal portrait settings. And these paintings are the ones that come to mind when I think of Sorolla.
After his death, Sorolla’s widow left many of his paintings to the Spanish public. His legacy is preserved as these paintings eventually formed the collection now known as the Museo Sorolla, the artist’s house in Madrid. The museum opened in 1932. Sorolla’s work is represented in museums throughout Spain, Europe, and America. In 1933, J. Paul Getty purchased ten Impressionist beach scenes done by Sorolla, several of which are now housed in the J. Paul Getty Museum. In 2007, many of his works were exhibited at the Petit Palais in Paris, France, alongside those of John Singer Sargent, a contemporary who painted in a similar style.
A recent exhibition, “All Things Bright and Beautiful,” featuring California impressionists, included one of Sorolla’s works. I also enjoyed seeing one of Sorolla’s beach scene paintings at the Met in New York City. This painting of Sorolla shows his playful capture of light as two adolescents lay at the water’s edge on the beach.
How he caught the wetness on their bodies, the innocence as they lay talking, and the water swirls around them!! The play of light on the bodies and water are exceptional. Notice his color relationships, blue-grays complementing the orange tinge of the flesh and the purple-grays balancing the yellow touches of sunlight. Check out the warmth in the yellow/purple grays of the girl’s shadow. The strength of this painting is not lost if you remove its color. Study how he uses the swirling water to help direct the eye.
Observe the closeness in value this painting has and the wonderfully designed shapes of each. From this, you can see how Sorolla subtly uses the contrast of these shapes to move you through his painting. The lightest value leads you into the painting to the young girl. Her gaze to the young boy leads you further into the painting (as you also move away from his lightest light to a darker value). The swirls of water and pattern of color draw your interest to swirl around the figures and investigate the shadows of their bodies on the beach and the bodies of the two figures themselves. This is one of my favorite Sorolla paintings.
Another favorite of mine is this exquisite painting of a woman in the countryside reading in the breeze, which shows how Sorolla uses value, color, and shape to engage the viewer in the painting. Again, notice his closeness of value, making the central figure part of the same design shape as the waves in the background. The touch of light on her left shoulder creates the separation that is so crucial to us, believing she is not a part of the waves. One little dab of paint at a value lighter than the waves that break her shadowed dress from them. So soft is the edge; our attention is not stopped by it, but
we know it is there.
A final comparison of Sorolla’s exceptional capturing of light and shadow.
Again, minimal values are used and placed to obtain movement through the painting. Examine the front left of the painting. Within the same value, he provides through color a feeling of light on the bench that moves to the ground shadow. This is a subtle change within one shape and value. As we move back into the painting, following along the bench, the colors cool within the value, taking us further into the shadow. Our eye moves to the right back into the light. Entry points into this painting are many–as with the ones above. Sorolla's planning of his compositions provides the viewer with those many entry points. Just as you think you will exit the painting on the right, where the darkest dark takes you almost out of the painting, he places a white wall angled back into the painting. Your escape is thwarted as you examine more plants in sunlight, leading you back to the center of the painting.
Sorolla’s strength of composition, just like Singer Sargent’s, beckons anyone who wants to study their accomplishments. Sorolla’s use of color and value is another example of how simple yet complex you can make your paintings by controlling them.
Composition and design of shapes within the painting deserve so much of our attention. Who said painting doesn’t require thought? The thought takes you to the zone where our muse lives as we create and control the process.