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Lluís Masriera i Rosés (1872–1958) was a Spanish jewellery designer.
Biography
He was born inBarcelona
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
in 1872 to the painter Josep Masriera, who was also a well-known silversmith
A silversmith is a metalworker who crafts objects from silver. The terms ''silversmith'' and ''goldsmith'' are not exact synonyms, as the techniques, training, history, and guilds are (or were, at least) largely the same but differed in that t ...
and, along with his brother Francesc Masriera, ran the family jewelry business started by his father, José Masriera i Vidal.
Lluís Masriera started in his family's workshop and created pieces with the same aesthetic and precision that the workshop had always been known for; one which highlighted technical perfection but little creativity.
Education
In 1889, Masriera went to study at the Academy of Beaux Arts inGeneva
Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
where he was taught by the enameller Edward Lossier
The geographic positioning afforded him the opportunity to travel to Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
often and frequent the salons. It was in these legendary meetings that Masriera was introduced to the idea of Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...
and the work of René Lalique
René Jules Lalique (; 6 April 1860 – 1 May 1945) was a French jeweller, medallist, and glass designer known for his creations of glass art, perfume bottles, vases, jewellery, chandeliers, clocks, and automobile hood ornaments.
Life
Lalique ...
.
Career
In 1900, at the age of eighteen, Masriera returned to Barcelona and was named the new artistic director of the family workshop and changed the direction and style of the jewellery that was produced. Inspired by Lalique's designs, Masriera melted down all the family’s existing jewellery stock in order to use the raw materials to redesign the pieces into his new style/aesthetic:Modernisme
''Modernisme'' (, Catalan for "modernism"), also known as Catalan modernism and Catalan art nouveau, is the historiographic denomination given to an art and literature movement associated with the search of a new entitlement of Catalan cultu ...
. The total inventory overhaul was completed in six months. The new collection debuted on Saint Thomas day in 1901 and the pieces "were immediately successful and sold out in a single week."
Masriera continued to create Modernisme pieces until 1913, when he stated in an essay, ''The Fall of Modernism'', that "Modernism asdead."
After Art Nouveau had fallen out of favor, Masriera moved on to the Noucentisme
Noucentisme (, ''noucentista'' being its adjective) was a Catalan cultural movement of the early 20th century that originated largely as a reaction against Modernisme, both in art and ideology, and was, simultaneously, a perception of art almos ...
school of design which embraced classical, timeless design elements until his death in 1958.
Legacy
His work lives on today under the Bagués-Masriera firm, established in 1985. Today, the store sits on the first floor of an example of Modernisme in Barcelona, Casa Amatller onPasseig de Gràcia
Passeig de Gràcia () is one of the major avenues in Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain) and one of its most important shopping and business areas, containing several of the city's most celebrated pieces of architecture. It is located in the central pa ...
. The firm keeps Masiera's art alive by "continu ngto master the artesian techniques of translucent enamelling and fire enamelling."
See also
* List of jewellery designers * List of people from Catalonia *List of Spanish artists
This is a list of notable Spanish people, Spanish artists born after 1800.
For artists born before this year, see List of Spanish artists (born 1300–1500) and List of Spanish artists (born 1500–1800)
Born 1801–1850
*Bernardo López ...
* Pendant with Saint George, design conserved at Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya
The (; ), abbreviated as MNAC (), is a museum of Catalonia, Catalan visual art located in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Situated on Montjuïc hill at the end of Avinguda de la Reina Maria Cristina, near Plaça d'Espanya, Barcelona, Pl Espanya, th ...
, in Barcelona
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Masriera i Roses, Lluis Date of birth missing Date of death missing Place of death missing 1872 births 1958 deaths 19th-century Spanish male artists 20th-century Spanish male artists Art Nouveau designers Artists from Barcelona Modernisme Jewellery designers Spanish designers Spanish expatriates in France Spanish expatriates in Switzerland