Pilar Belmonte (1952) - Figure assise

Pilar Belmonte Useros (Albacete, 1952)

Seated Figure
Acrylic on paper

Interesting original work by Spanish artist Pilar Belmonte Useros (Albacete, 1952), executed in acrylic on paper and signed in the lower-right corner.

The composition depicts a seated male figure, rendered through a pronounced figurative and geometric simplification. The figure is constructed from clearly defined areas of color, with virtually no facial features or incidental narrative elements. The reduction of forms allows the relationship between figure, space, and color to take center stage.

The work features a particularly distinctive palette, dominated by blues and cool tones that contrast with the horizontal magenta bands and dark areas. The background is arranged in large overlapping fields of color that create depth without resorting to traditional perspective. The result belongs to a contemporary figurative style with a synthetic, geometric tendency, sharing certain aspects with graphic art and color field painting, while keeping the human figure entirely recognizable.

The importance given to color is particularly significant in the context of Pilar Belmonte's career. The artist herself has identified light and color as fundamental elements of her pictorial research, while the Museu d'Art Contemporani Vicente Aguilera Cerni likewise highlights both as essential aspects of her work.

About the artist

Pilar Belmonte Useros was born in Albacete in 1952 and has lived in Valencia since 1968. She began her studies at the Escuela Superior de Bellas Artes de San Carlos in Valencia and went on to build a distinguished academic and international career. She holds a PhD in Fine Arts from the Complutense University of Madrid, received a Fulbright/Banco de Bilbao scholarship to pursue two years of further study in the United States, and earned a Master of Arts from New York University in 1981.

Her exhibition career began in 1971 and has spanned more than five decades, with over a hundred exhibitions and a presence in cities such as Madrid, Valencia, Bilbao, London, New York, Paris, Venice, and other locations across Europe and the United States. In 2014, a retrospective exhibition was organized, covering approximately fifty years of her work.

Her artistic practice has explored a range of styles and techniques: oil, acrylic, wax, collage, screen printing, mixed media, installations, and contemporary stained glass. In the 1970s, she worked primarily in figurative art—landscapes, the human figure, and objects—and gradually simplified and abstracted her forms. Her stay in New York between the late 1970s and early 1980s was particularly important to this evolution.

Since the 1990s, she has also pursued significant projects involving light, color, and architecture through contemporary stained-glass commissions, collaborating, among others, with specialist German workshops. Her career thus brings together painting, color research, teaching, and artistic projects connected to architectural space.

Condition

The work is in good overall condition, considering its nature and age. It is framed and protected by glass.

The glass shows dirt and signs of age, so cleaning is recommended to improve the presentation and viewing of the work.

The frame shows signs of use and may have scuffs, minor losses, dents, or other age-related damage. The frame is included free of charge as an accessory to the work and is not included in its valuation; therefore, any possible damage to it will not be grounds for a claim.

The specific condition of the work, glass, and frame can be seen in detail in the photographs, which form part of the description.