Self-Portrait as Bécquer
750 €
This captivating small-format oil on canvas, titled 'Self-Portrait as Bécquer' and dated 2000, stands as an exceptionally singular artistic document within the catalog of neorealist master Henry Flórez Soler, created during his fruitful period of residence in the Principality of Andorra following his arrival in Europe in 1999. The artwork presents a bold exercise in meta-painting and poetic identification in which the artist merges his own features with the iconic romantic image immortalized in Valeriano Bécquer's famous 1862 portrait of his brother, the poet Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer. Executed with flawless academic technique, Flórez Soler demonstrates a deep mastery of 19th-century masters and Spanish Baroque portraiture, employing directional zenithal lighting that models the facial features with striking anatomical precision while lifting the figure out of a neutral background shaded in tones of brown and slate grey. Notable highlights include the intensity of the three-quarter gaze, the jet-black curls, and the subtle rendering of skin tones, set in contrast with the painterly, sketchy handling of the dark coat and crisp white collar—elements that reinforce the melancholic psychology and introspective mood defining romantic aesthetics. This cabinet piece captures Flórez Soler's stylistic evolution during his Andorran tenure just prior to establishing his credentials as an official copyist at top institutions like the Museo del Prado and MNAC, turning this self-portrait into a refined collection piece of great narrative pull and significant appeal for collectors of classicist contemporary figuration.
TechniqueOil sobre tela
Dimensions
Year2000
ArtistFLÓREZ SOLER, Henry
FLÓREZ SOLER, Henry
Henry Flórez Soler (Bucaramanga, Colombia, 1971) stands out as one of the most accomplished and refined figures in contemporary Hispanic-American neorealism, whose formidable technical background stems from the mentorship of renowned painter Óscar Rodríguez Naranjo, who instilled in him a rigorous study of the Old Masters of Western art. Following his move to the Principality of Andorra in 1999—a country that served as his gateway for integration into the European art circuit and where he earned various institutional awards—Flórez Soler cemented an exceptional virtuosity by securing official accreditation as an authorized copyist at Spain's premier art museums, most notably the Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid and the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC) in Barcelona, an analytical practice that decisively refined his command of drawing, watercolor, pastel, and oil painting. His academic standing was formalized in 2004 upon his selection for the Master Painting Workshop directed by prominent realist master Guillermo Muñoz Vera at the Aranjuez Summer Courses, leading to a postgraduate fellowship at the Foundation of Arts and Contemporary Authors (Arauco Foundation) in Chinchón, where he subsequently joined the teaching faculty in Madrid. Supported by an international footprint expanded through traveling exhibitions in Chile and Argentina starting in 2007, as well as gallery shows and art fairs across Europe and Latin America, his artistic output is distinguished by a brilliant rendering of atmospheric light, bold photographic framing, and an hyperrealist approach imbued with deep poetic and narrative power. Henry Flórez Soler's work is housed in major institutional and corporate holdings, including the art collections of the Government of Andorra, the Arauco Foundation, the permanent collection of the Foundation of Arts and Contemporary Authors, and the institutional holdings of the Aranjuez City Council, alongside inclusion in prominent private collections throughout Spain, Colombia, Andorra, Chile, Argentina, France, and the United States.
Recommended works
Other selected pieces from the Art Andorra catalogue.
