Enrique Munné (1880-1949) - El pueblo

Pictura Subastas presents this magnificent artwork by Enrique Munné, depicting a small rural settlement stretched along a hillside, surrounded by fields, trees and mountains, in a harmonious celebration of the landscape and life integrated into nature. The painting stands out for its excellent technique and the high pictorial quality it conveys.

• Framed dimensions: 64x83.5x3 cm.
• Unframed dimensions: 54x72 cm.
• Oil on panel signed by the artist in the lower right corner.
• The piece is in good conservation condition.
• The work is sold with a precious frame (included in the auction as a gift).

The work comes from an exclusive private collection in Girona.

Important note: the photographs included form an integral part of the lot description. Digital representation in an indicative mockup; there may be differences with the real article in color, scale and details.

The painting will be professionally packed by a IVEX expert (https://www.instagram.com/ivex.online/), using high-quality materials to guarantee its protection. The shipping price covers both the cost of professional packaging and the transportation itself.
Shipping will be carried out by Correos, GLS or NACEX with tracking. International shipping available.

------------------------------------------------------------------

This painting presents an extensive rural panorama viewed from an elevated position, where a small cluster of buildings blends among slopes, fields and masses of vegetation. In the center of the scene, several light volumes in pink, lilac and violet tones stand out, grouped on the ground like an architectural nucleus that seems to adapt to the slope. Around it unfolds a wide, undulating landscape, full of chromatic contrasts and changes in level. The image conveys the impression of a living territory, shaped by both nature and human presence, under a soft clarity that enhances the variety of colors.

The composition is organized through a succession of planes that guide the gaze from the buildings and rooftops in the foreground to the distant hills on the horizon. At the bottom appear fragments of houses with reddish, pinkish and violet roofs, some partially hidden by vegetation and by the irregular terrain. These nearby houses draw the viewer into the scene and create the feeling of observing the landscape from another inhabited elevation, perhaps from a path, a natural terrace or a nearby hillside.

In the center rises the most striking element of the work: a grouping of large light forms that recalls a settlement on a rocky slope. Their surfaces present a rich combination of pale pinks, whites, grays, violets and delicate blueish nuances. The buildings overlap and ascend progressively, generating a compact and irregular structure that seems to emerge directly from the earth. The absence of rigid ordering gives the place an ancient, organic character deeply tied to the landscape.

Some of these central shapes have vertical, angular profiles evoking elevated walls, narrow facades or rock formations adapted as habitable spaces. The light falls on their broad faces and makes them the main luminous focus of the composition, while the sides and lower areas are defined by dark shadows. This contrast reinforces the volume of the whole and allows a clear perception of its dominant position over the valley.

To the right appears an isolated building with a pitched roof and violet tones, located on a small elevation. Its separate presence sparks curiosity and provides a point of balance against the large central core. The triangular form of the roof stands out against the greens and yellows of the surroundings, while the dark base seems to merge with the hillside. This solitary dwelling suggests simple rural architecture, adapted to the topography and surrounded by a landscape of great breadth.

In the lower right zone, other dispersed buildings are distinguished, recognizable by their reddish and pink roofs. Some are almost hidden among patches of vegetation, roads and unevenness, while others appear more clearly. The irregular distribution of these houses creates the impression of a settlement extended across the mountain, with no rigid streets or obvious boundaries. Each structure seems to occupy the space the terrain permits, reinforcing the unity between inhabited space and nature.

The foreground is dominated by an intense mix of greens, yellows, ochers, browns and violets. Plant forms extend in all directions and generate a dynamic surface, crossed by paths, plots and shadowed areas. The chromatic richness suggests a warm landscape, perhaps observed during a season when the grass and fields begin to take on golden tones. Small color variations allow distinguishing different types of terrain and give great vitality to the scene.

Between the central buildings and the foreground houses opens a darker zone, composed of deep browns, bluish greens, garnets and violets. This space acts as a shadow band that increases the sense of relief. It could correspond to a hollow, a ravine, or a part of the hillside covered by denser vegetation. Its chromatic depth makes the light-colored volumes above appear even brighter and higher.

On the left extends a wide area of fields bathed in yellows, greens and ochers. The terrain seems to descend gently from the background to the center of the composition, traversed by small color variations suggesting paths, crops or clearings among the vegetation. The luminosity of this part contrasts with the bluish mass of the valley on the right and provides the landscape with an attractive alternation between warm and cool zones.

Over these fields rise several trees with thin, dark trunks. Some appear almost bare, with vertical branches reaching the sky, while others retain masses of green, yellow, bluish and brown leaves. Their silhouettes introduce an ascending rhythm and break the horizontality of the distant hills. The darkest tree on the left has an especially intense presence and acts as a contrasting element against the open clarity of the fields.

The trees around the central core seem to envelop and protect the buildings. Their slender trunks spread at different heights and create a delicate vertical weave over the landscape. Some are barely distinguishable by their violet or brown hues, while others stand out thanks to small bright reflections. This vegetation adds a sense of intimacy to the settlement and softens the geometric harshness of its walls and roofs.

In the upper central area, a small cluster of intense yellow flowers or plants appears on one of the elevations. Although it is a detail of small dimensions, its brightness draws the eye and adds a note of freshness to the ensemble. This yellow point dialogues with the golden fields on the left and the sunlit areas on the right, visually linking different parts of the composition.

The right side of the landscape is occupied by a deep expanse of bluish and greenish vegetation. The tones navy blue, gray, turquoise and violet blend to form a large mass that seems to correspond to a hillside covered with trees and shadows. This cool zone contrasts with the yellows and ochers of the nearby fields, creating one of the most expressive contrasts in the image. The darkness of the valley adds depth and makes the central part advance visually toward the viewer.

As the gaze moves away, details simplify and shapes become large bands of color. The mid slopes show a combination of blues, greyish greens and violets, while the horizon is defined by a long elevation with a soft profile. This gradual transition generates a considerable sense of distance. The landscape seems to extend far beyond what is depicted, into a quiet and sparsely inhabited territory.

The line of the horizon crosses almost the entire upper part and separates the mountains from the sky with a gentle waviness. In some spots, small violet elevations stand out above the crest and break its continuity. The mountains do not appear monumental or abrupt, but serene and distant, enveloped by an atmosphere that softens their profiles. Their presence closes the composition without limiting the sense of breadth.

The sky occupies a relatively narrow band, dominated by whites, creams, soft grays and delicate blueish tints. Its uniform clarity provides luminosity to the whole and avoids competing with the chromatic intensity of the earth. There are no clearly defined clouds, but rather a tranquil atmospheric surface that seems to envelop the hills. This simplicity allows all attention to focus on the complexity of the lower landscape.

The chromatic range possesses an extraordinary variety. The pinks and purples of the central structures relate to the roofs in the foreground, while greens traverse fields, trees and slopes. Yellows and ochers suggest illuminated areas and dry lands; deep blues create shadow and distance; and garnets and browns provide solidity to the nearer parts. The combination of warm and cool colors maintains a constant balance and gives the landscape intense emotional richness.

Light seems to distribute unevenly across the territory, illuminating certain parcels and leaving others in shadow. The yellow and light green areas appear to receive direct light, while the blues and violets mark deeper or protected areas. This alternation produces a sense of atmospheric movement, as if the light advances over the hills and continually transforms the appearance of the landscape.

The elevated perspective allows simultaneously to contemplate numerous elements without any losing its relation to the whole. The nearby houses establish scale; the central core organizes the composition; the trees mark the different planes; the fields provide luminosity; and the mountains widen the horizon. The viewer can walk slowly through the painting, stopping at small buildings, paths, patches of vegetation and color changes that reveal the territory’s complexity.

The scene conveys a deep sense of isolation and serenity. There are no human figures or obvious signs of immediate activity, although the abundance of dwellings indicates a inhabited place. This absence of people allows imagining a silent population during the quiet hours of the day. The houses seem to guard stories inside them, while the landscape remains vast and stable around them.

There can also be perceived a dialogue between permanence and transformation. The hills and the terrain suggest an ancient nature, while the constructions reveal the human will to find refuge and settle in a difficult space. The buildings do not dominate the mountain, but seem to grow alongside it, using its unevenness and adapting to its forms. This coexistence makes the settlement an extension of the landscape itself.

The painting evokes the charm of rural villages located in mountainous regions, where architecture, crops and vegetation form an inseparable unit. The dispersed rooftops, the barely suggested paths and the clear facades spark the imagination and suggest a slow life, marked by the seasons and by the daily relationship with the land. The landscape thus acquires an emotional dimension linked to home, memory and belonging.

Together, the work represents a picturesque rural settlement spread along a hillside, surrounded by luminous fields, slender trees, abundant vegetation and deep blue mountains. The light-colored buildings in the center emerge as the visual heart of the scene, while the dispersed houses and reddish rooftops integrate harmoniously into the relief. The richness of pinks, purples, greens, yellows and blues transforms the panorama into a vibrant and evocative vision, capable of conveying the beauty of a landscape inhabited in perfect coexistence with nature, silence and the vast horizon.