From Templum Fine Art Auction
Painter of the Madrid Romanticist school, Jose Llaneces (1863-1919) is known in the artistic world as Llaneces. His artistic inclination arose through his work, since childhood, in the studio of the photographer Herbert and his training at the School of Arts and Crafts. He also attended the Higher School of Painting of the Academy of San Fernando and was a copyist at the Prado Museum.
In 1886, he settled in Paris, where he focused on genre painting and casacones, under the protection of the commercial success that this theme achieved in the international market, imbued in the artistic wake of Fortuny. His friendship with Francisco Domingo, well-known in the Argentine artistic world, opened the doors to the Buenos Aires market, from where he received important commissions not only for painting, but also for sculpture.
Secretary of the Society of Artists in Paris, he was named a Knight of the Order of Charles III in 1894, a Knight of the Legion of Honour in 1901 and a Commander of the Royal Order of Isabella the Catholic in 1902. At the beginning of the century he returned to Spain and devoted himself to the execution of portraits, which he combined with the painting of landscapes and popular anecdotal scenes that he collected in various cities. He enjoyed the protection of royalty, and painted numerous portraits of Queen Maria Cristina and distinguished members of her court.
He ended his life by committing suicide in Madrid on 11 December 1919. In 1925, the Paris Salon paid tribute to him with a posthumous exhibition of his work held in France. In 1901 he donated a statue of Goya to the Prado Museum, sent from Paris, where he lived.
