Spanish artist Joaquín Sorolla was a great admirer of Adolph Menzel and Jules Bastien-Lepage, not only for their virtuosic technique, but also for their attachment to the commonplace beauty of regular people in their home region.
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| Joaquín Sorolla Y Bastida - Paseo a orillas del mar 1909 Museo Sorolla |
He reserved his utmost admiration for the Swedish contemporary Anders Zorn in an article that he wrote in 1903.
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| Anders Zorn - Flickan från Älvdalen 1911 |
He said (loosely translated): "Zorn was the one who had reached the closest to perfection of what I believe to be the aim of oil painting. I always kept track with lively emotion of what the master Zorn produced, and each painting reaffirms my belief in him. I have tried to explain to myself how he manages to achieve such a powerful interpretation of natural effects. Whenever I believe I've gotten close to achieving it, I am left wondering if I really have found the true key."
"I have already said that his technique is what we Spaniards are trying to do, but his way of painting is broader, firmer. He plucks the most delicate note from his palette, and with great care he places it in his painting. He never betrays nature with painting gimmicks like rubbed textures or glazes, by means of which other painters just try to achieve the superficial appearance of good painting."
The two artists remained friends throughout their careers. Sorolla never visited Sweden, but in 1902 he received Zorn as his guest in Spain.
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SOROLLA, J. (1903), “Apunte sobre Zorn”, en La Lectura, Revista de Ciencias y de Artes, Año III, Tomo 1º, Madrid, pp. 571-572. Read more in the free pdf at Sorolla y Los Pintores Escandinavos
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