Camps-Ribera, circa 1985, Santa Ana, California. Photograph:
ATVM files.
The Painter Francisco Camps-Ribera (1895-1991) was born in
Barcelona, Spain, and attended "L' Academia Lliure", and "L' Escola de Bellas
Arts" in this city. He was a pupil of Isidre Nonell (1907-1908), and worked as a
designer ceramist at the Cocurny Studios in Barcelona. In the 1920’s went to
Madrid and Paris and became interested in impressionism, as well as in cubism.
Cézanne influenced his work. Francisco painted oils on canvas with themes based
on landscapes, still life, and people. He produced ceramics and collages in
figurative post-impressionist styles as well as abstractionism.
In Spain
the artist was a member of the art groups “Nou Ambient”, “Els Evolucionistes”,
GAI Group (Group of independent Artists.) Camps went to France in 1937, and
established his residence in Mexico in 1939, where he was a professor at the
"Escuela Nacional de Artes Plasticas" (National School of Fine Arts), in Mexico
City, which gave him the opportunity to help form several generations of Mexican
artists. He wrote several works related to the Mexican art history, which was
one of his passions.
Since his first exhibit at the Workers Athenaeum in
1915 in Barcelona, his work was included in hundreds of individual as well as
collective exhibits, for example, “Nou Ambient”, Dalmau Galleries, Layetanes
Galleries, “Sala Parés” (Margall), El Camarin Galleries, “Sala Nonell”, in
Barcelona, Spain; the Catalonian Center of New York, Muirhead Galleries, Costa
Mesa, Heller Gallery, San Francisco, in the USA; the Spanish-Mexican Cultural
Institute, Israeli Center, Fine Arts Palace, Museum of Modern Art, in Mexico
City; “Club de France”, Paris, and the University of Toronto, Canada, just to
mention some. Camp’s works are displayed in several public places including the
“Ciudadela" Museum in Barcelona, Spain, and in the Museum of Modern Art in
Mexico City.
In 1978 Camps-Ribera returned to Barcelona. On the occasion
of his 90 the birthday he received several honors in Spain and in Mexico; his
work was included in several exhibits, as well as in the gallery of the “Caixa
de Barcelona.”