Albert Ràfols-Casamada

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Albert Ràfols-Casamada (2 February 1923 – 17 December 2009) was a Spanish painter, poet and teacher from Barcelona. He is regarded as one of the most important Catalan artists of his time. His early work was figurative and post-expressionist, but he soon developed his own abstract style with a poetic view of everyday life.

Early life and education
He was born in the Gràcia neighborhood of Barcelona to painter Albert Ràfols i Cullerés and Josefina Casamada i Oliver. He began studying architecture at the University of Barcelona (1942–44) but, in 1948, he decided to pursue painting full time.

Career
Ràfols-Casamada started showing his art in 1946 with the Els Vuit group and had his first solo exhibition the following year. In 1950 he received a French government study grant and moved to Paris with his wife, painter Maria Girona, and other Catalan artists. He spent about four years there before returning to Catalonia. He exhibited widely across Europe and the Americas. A major retrospective was held in 2001 at MACBA in Barcelona and the Valencian Institute of Modern Art, and he was honored with a tribute at the National Museum of Catalan Art in 2009.

Poetry
He began writing poetry in 1939 and published his work from 1972 onward. Notable books include Com una capsa (1972) and Signe d’aire. Obra poètica 1968–1978 (1976). He continued publishing poetry until 2004.

Personal life and teaching
In 1952 he married Maria Girona Benet, whom he had met in 1945 at the Tàrrega Art School. In 1967 they helped found EINA, a Barcelona art and design school inspired by Bauhaus ideas; he led the school for 17 years and taught there and elsewhere.

Works and legacy
His art is in many major museums around the world, including the Guggenheim in New York, the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the British Museum, among others. In Barcelona, he created public works such as The Four Seasons (Les quatre estacions), a ceiling mural in the City Hall’s Tourist Information Office (1982), and two murals for Palau Sant Jordi (1992). He also made stained glass pieces, for example at the Virgen del Camino Sanctuary in León (1959) and the Benlloc Residence (1965).

Publications and donations
Ràfols-Casamada published mainly in Catalan, with some works in Spanish, and wrote for newspapers like El País and El Món as well as various art magazines. In 2015 his family donated a collection of his and Girona’s materials to the Library of Catalonia.