Valencia
Valencia
He was a Spanish painter (Valencia, 1855-Valencia, 1937). He was born in the Cañamelar neighborhood, into a family with a broad artistic tradition, although humble. His mother was Ángela Gil Campos and his father was Juan Antonio Benlliure y Tomás (1832-1907). He carried out home decoration work by drawing false perspectives, garden elements, vases, garlands..., an ornamental painting very popular with the high society of the time. He later was one of the teachers of his other brother, Juan Antonio Benlliure. In his art he achieved a very personal style that portrayed both simple and grandiose themes. He cultivated traditional painting, which today represents a testimony of the Valencia of yesterday. He began his studies at the age of fourteen at the School of San Carlos, where he had Francisco Domingo Marqués as a teacher. Given the signs of talent that the young José offered, he was sent to the Spanish school in Rome (. 1879). He won his first medal at the National Exhibition of 1887 with The Vision of the Colosseum. In Rome he caught that artistic fever, starring the Macchiaioli, to which many other Spanish painters joined. From this period it is worth highlighting works of a traditional style such as The Carnival of Rome of 1881 (Museo Carmen Thyssen Málaga), a small scene with energetic brushstrokes, sketched in certain points while meticulous in others, precious, the painters represented events of the everyday, social, popular customs that had little to do with academic and historical painting. In 1888 he traveled to Algeria and in 1897 to Morocco. He belonged to the Academy of San Fernando (Madrid), San Lucas (Rome), San Carlos (Valencia), Brera (Milan) and Munich. In 1901 he assumed the direction of the Fine Arts of Spain in Rome.
