Antonio García Mencía

Madrid, 1852 - 1915.

He studied at the San Fernando Royal Academy of Fine Arts with masters such as Federico de Madrazo and Carlos Luís de Ribera. He was quick to excel and in 1871 he first participated in the National Fine Arts Exhibition.

Aged twenty, he moved to Paris, where he contacted the Spanish artistic colony and was invited to artists’ meetings with Raimundo de Madrazo, his former master's son and Leon Bonnat. He later lived in Rome, where he married the painter Josefina Corchon Diaque.

His Parisian era was shaped by a certain orientalism, discovered thanks to the impressionist movement which had just emerged, focusing on young women and city scenes. The City of Light soon recognised his skill and in 1873 he debuted at the Salon, where he was invited back in 1876, 1879 and 1880. His creations received a number of awards in London, Berlin and Bordeaux.

Back in Spain, he focused on portrait and genre painting, which he exhibited at Barcelona’s Sala Bosch between 1893 and 1896. His return to National Fine Arts Exhibitions resulted in a third prize in 1892 for “Estrella Polar” (Pole Star) , y una segunda en 1901 con “La nube de verano” (Summer Cloud). However, his greatest recognition in Spain was for his work as an illustrator, contributing to various newspapers and journals of the period, including, “La Ilustración”.

His command of Watercolour technique and portrait painting, plus his passion for young women yielded examples of great freshness, such as the 1904 UEE calendar. The moment of the shot is captured very naturally, as though a snapshot taken with an instant camera, as part of day-to-day life. This spontaneity lent masterly skill to his watercolours, as he showed one year later for the 1905 almanac when two mine blasters were depicted using explosives for their work.

He spent the last few years of his life almost entirely in Paris, where in 1907 and 1911 he again participated with “Brujería” (Witchcraft) and “El Anticuario” (Antique Dealer), respectively.

1904 Antonio García Mencía El game Watercolour on paper 51 x 27 cm.	1905 Antonio García Mencía Two blasters Watercolour on paper 51 x 27 cm.