Javier Mulio - Bodegón con ciruela suspendida

Javier Mulio - Still life with a suspended plum – Oil on canvas mounted on a stretcher – c. 2000

The essence of this work participates in the characteristic approaches of Mulio's pictorial language: an essential and balanced composition with an extremely precise observation of matter and carefully controlled lighting.

Javier Mulio has a very personal painting style: simple compositions of still lifes with crystal, fruit and liquid, endowed with exquisite lighting. His paintings reflect a timeless serenity and are always carefully balanced in color, form and texture.

The artist has dedicated his life to painting still lifes using the techniques of the Dutch masters, but with a more contemporary use of color and the elements.

Mulio's works are part of private and corporate collections across the Far East, Europe and the Americas. There are also records of galleries and international auction houses that continue to market his work, both in oil on panel and on canvas.

DESCRIPTION OF THE WORK
This piece constitutes a powerful visual illusion exercise within Javier Mulio's hyperrealist still life.
The artist transports us to a still life with a singular composition, almost theatrical, where the darkness of the background makes a mature plum suspended by a small structure of knots, ribbons and cords stand out, rendered with great precision.

The upper cord, its fibers, the central knot, the vertical thread, the loop that holds the fruit and the surrounding cord are treated with such detail that they produce a strong sense of reality.

The plum, in intense violet and reddish tones, shows its volume, texture, shine and stem with great precision. Under it, a small transparent drop seems to detach and remain suspended in space.

The drop introduces an illusion of liquid matter, gravity and movement within a static image.

The simplicity of composition and the deliberate austerity concentrate the visual interest on the small organic form, creating a marked contrast with the black space surrounding it.

The work presents a pronounced trompe-l'œil or trampantojo effect, based on the illusion that the represented objects occupy real space in front of the background.

SIGNATURE
The work is signed “Javier” in the lower right corner, as can be seen in the supplied photographs. The artist presents works documented with different forms of signature, including “Javier” and “Javier Mulio”.

DATING: Late 20th / Early 21st Century

DIMENSIONS:
Height: 27.5 cm
Width: 22 cm

CONDITION
The work is in very good overall condition for its age. The painterly layer is stable and preserves the liveliness of the colors.
No significant losses of pictorial material or structural damage are observed.

ADDITIONAL NOTES:
** The work is delivered mounted on its stretcher, as shown in the photographs.
** The photographs form part of the description.
** The final measurements and weight indicated correspond to the configuration of secure packaging, indispensable to guarantee proper protection of the three works during transport.

ABOUT JAVIER MULIO (Alcoy, Alicante, 1957)

Mulio grew up within Alcoy's artistic community, and this influence encouraged him to begin painting at the age of fourteen.

At eighteen, he began his formal artistic training and studied under the direction of Spanish artist and professor Mila Gómez in Alcoy from 1973 to 1976 and, after completing his training, received a Fourth Degree Certificate as a result of his talent and the quality of his works.

His stylistic evolution with hyperrealism is closely related to the study of the tradition of still-life masters and the influence of photography.

Mulio began painting professionally after completing his studies in 1978. He specialized mainly in still life, recognized for a realist and hyperrealist painting based on a meticulous representation of fruits, flowers, glass, liquids and everyday objects.

Since then, he has regularly exhibited in galleries in Spain, France, the United Kingdom and the United States with great critical success.

INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION HISTORY

Among the documented national and international exhibitions and presentations are:
• Sánchez Gallery, Granada, Spain – 1982
• Aguado Gallery, Logroño, Spain – 1995
• Galerie Soria, Châteauroux, France – 1996
• From 1997, his international career includes presence and exhibitions in the United States, including San Francisco, New York, Washington D.C., St. Augustine and Atlanta.
• Participation in the Shanghai Art Fair – 2011, a major international Asian art fair. Artsy

Mulio's works are part of international private collections in Japan, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Bahrain, the Netherlands and the United States, among others.