Mariano Peláez Langa (1920-?) - Chasing Dreams

- Oil on canvas.

- The trajectory of the Madrid-born painter Mariano Peláez stands out for a late but unwavering vocation, shaped by self-discipline. Although he showed drawing aptitude since childhood, the Civil War (where he drew to “cure ills”) and his later career as a Technical Industrial Engineer forced him to postpone his passion, limiting painting to stolen hours. This self-taught artist, a deep connoisseur of painting (a “scholar in contemplation”), worked in silence for many years, seeking the maturity of his “pictorial forms” with rare willpower, until he finally took early retirement to devote himself entirely to his art. His determination was rewarded when, at 41, he held his first exhibition in 1961 at Sala Alcón, launching a solid career that extended internationally and earned important awards, including the National Painting Prize of 1969. The validation of his worth later allowed him to sign a professional contract, ensuring the freedom to paint without the pressure of promotion or sale.

His style is “deeply Iberian,” drawing from a romantic conception that values the “modes, which are eternal” over passing fashions. His aesthetics are defined by a profound Goyesque influence, adopting the “shredded realism” of the Maño master, though with a sensibility that, according to José Hierro, links him to art nouveau and a singular Nordic expressionism. His palette is deliberately somber, dark, grave, and austere, with a predilection for earthy tones and ochre, avoiding pure color to achieve what has been called a “sweet expressionism”: a world view tenderly ironic and not grim. Technically, his painting evolves from an initial wash toward cleaner, plainer compositions in the 1980s and 1990s, prioritizing essence. The receipt of several Honors Medals in the BMW Prize sealed his consecration, consolidating a legacy of coherence, firmness, and unwavering artistic honesty that roots him with the great Prado masters.

- Dimensions of the unframed image: 27 x 35 cm / 43 x 52 cm with a magnificent classic-style frame.

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