LLEÓ COMELERAN

LLEÓ COMELERAN (Perpignan, 1830- Barcelona, ?).
"Spanish Glory", 1890.
Oil on canvas.
Signed in the lower left corner.
With plaque "Mes m'estimo honra sense barcos que no pas barcos sense honra (More worth honour without ships, than ships without honour)".
Measurements: 110 x 127 cm; 142 x 158 cm (frame).
Lleó Comeleran offers us in this canvas an interior scene charged with symbolism, a reflection of Spanish nationalism and national identity during the 19th century. In it, a proud father narrates to his son the events that took place in the navy. The little boy listens attentively, absorbed in his father's grandiose words, holding in his hands a pamphlet with the inscription 'Spanish Glory' and the portrait of Casto Méndez Núñez, a sailor, Spanish military officer and rear-admiral of the Royal Spanish Navy. The plaque in the frame, with the inscription "Better honour without ships than ships without honour", helps to understand the moral purpose of the canvas: it is a Spanish cliché spoken by Casto Méndez Núñez expressing the preference for honour or honour rather than material advantages. It is in keeping with the national stereotype, which presents Spaniards as reckless and detached. Lleó Comeleran places the main characters next to a fireplace: the boy is shown seated on a humble wooden and wicker chair, the father on a carved wooden chest. The interior is completed with jugs, bottles, plates, quinquels, decanters and other utensils typical of the social and economic status of those depicted.
A painter and draughtsman, Lleó Comeleran participated assiduously in the art exhibitions held in Barcelona in 1866, 1868, 1870, 1871, 1873 and 1876, presenting his canvases of seascapes, landscapes and popular portraits. In 1875 he painted and decorated the new art room of Francesc Bassols, and in 1881 he exhibited at the Casa Segur de abanicos. Comeleran later devoted himself to illustrating magazines and books, contributing to "La Ilustración 1881 - 1886)" and the book "La Historia general de la masonería (1883)".

Presenta dos roturas en la mitad inferior izquierda.Al dorso se aprecia un parche con restos de papel de periódico adherido. Este lote puede verse en la Sala de SetdartBarcelona situada en C/Aragón, 346.