Eleazar

Eleazar is a Spanish painter and sculptor who was born in Siles, Jaén, Spain in 1954. He lives and works in Barcelona, the city where he has had his workshop since 1979.

Early life

Eleazar was born in 1954 the Spanish town of Siles in the province of Jaén, Andalusia;

Work

Eleazar often works in series of several related works. His influences include graffiti, Art Brut artist Jean Dubuffet and the interpretations of African masks by Picasso. According to the linguist Ángel Gómez Moreno, other influences include children's drawings and comics, as well as Francisco Goya's engravings. Moreno describes Eleazar's paintings as having the flat space medieval art.

His work deploys irony and "critical satire" to make visual statements about cultural myths and social issues. Formally, his paintings involve a mixture of collage, graffiti-like brush work, and include the use of charcoal, written words, incisions and other mixed-media techniques. One series of his work is a tribute to the female characters in the novel Don Quixote.

After his exhibition, Eleazar's Tour 2010-2011 was withdrawn from public display by the Provincial Council of Malaga for "attacking the dignity of politicians" and for "denigrating women". The artist's gallerist criticized the censorship of the traveling exhibition, claiming that the works were removed "without notifying either me or the artist". Eleazar stated that he felt that the politicians who censored his work were confusing the message (of the paintings) with the messenger.

The following show by the artist, From the Austrias to Spain is Different, parodied the work of Spanish master-artist Diego Velázquez, such as The Triumph of Bacchus.

Gallery