Antonio Reyna Manescau

Antonio María de la Concepción Reyna Manescau, variously cited as Antonio María (de) Reyna Manescau or simply Antonio Reyna Manescau (Spanish: [an'tonio 'reina manes'kau]; 5 December 1859 – 3 February 1937), was a Spanish painter who developed most of his career in Italy. Arguably a member of the Málaga School of Painting, he studied under Bernardo Ferrándiz and alongside Moreno Carbonero. He moved to Italy in his early 20s, where he was further influenced by Italian and Spanish expatriate artists, and where he lived for the rest of his life.

As a boy Antonio showed a great ability for drawing. Although he continued living in Coín for the rest of his childhood, he began his artistic training at the School of Fine Arts in Malaga, where he was taught by Joaquín Martínez de la Vega, first, and then by Bernardo Ferrándiz, founder of the Málaga School of Painting. He studied alongside future master José Moreno Carbonero, who was just a year older than him. From a young age he exhibited his works regularly, standing out in the local artistic environment for his use of colors, the attractiveness of his compositions and the agility of his brushwork. He moved to Rome (where he was to live until his death), and in 1885 visited Venice; from that year on, Venetian landscapes, showing landmarks like the Grand Canal and Piazza San Marco but also less known quarters of the city, are ubiquitous in his work.

In 1895, Antonio, then 36 years of age, was already a recognized and awarded painter. That year, while his brother Ricardo was appointed mayor of Coín, Antonio was invited by the Ateneo de Madrid board to decorate their headquarters. While in Madrid, the King of Spain, Alfonso XIII, made him a Knight of the Royal Order of Carlos III, the highest distinction awarded to a Spanish artist at that time.

Reyna Manescau's works are represented at museums such as the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Hermitage Museum, the Carmen Thyssen Museum and the Málaga Museum, and are also present in various private collections, such as the Bellver Collection in Seville or the Pedrera Martínez Collection based in the Sorzano de Tejada Palace, Orihuela.

Style and technique

Reyna Manescau was primarily a landscape and veduta painter that devoted most of his production to the city of Venice. He excelled at the painting, in small dimensions, of such urban landscapes, repeating them in many occasions with minimal variations. His creations are noted for his preciosity and the importance he places in the accurate depiction of architectural detail. In his painting he shows a great ability for drawing and an innate skill for composition, abundant richness of color and bold brushwork.

Gallery