Sea and Sky

This solitary sea view with its broad horizon is comparable to Padilla’s triptych San Pedro de Roda, which was awarded a prize at the International Fine Arts Exhibition in Barcelona in 1907. In addition, it is notably similar to the Sea View that was presented at the same exhibition, as it depicts the same place and has an identical signature. For the present author the Santander canvas dates from the same period as those two works, given that the Ampurdan coast and in particular Port de la Selva (a village that Padilla popularised) are recurring subjects in his oeuvre. While still living in Catalonia, Padilla evolved towards a more realist, highly defined and structured style than the one to be seen here. In contrast, this canvas retains the soft palette reminiscent of Anglada and characteristic of Padilla’s post-modernista period. In addition, given that it is a view of a real place, it retains a certain Symbolist atmosphere not to be found in his later works, which are closer to Alexandre de Cabanyes or Mir in his mature period.