I want a rebirth of oficio, a rebirth of skill and know-how, a rebirth of the traditional artistic values that great artists have bequeathed to us."
Alvar Suñol Munoz-Ramos, commonly known as Alvar, was born in 1935 in Montgat, a Catalan fishing village on the Mediterranean coast near Barcelona. By the age of 17, he was accepted into the Escuela Superior de Bellas Artes de San Jorge in Barcelona. In 1960, he moved to Paris and exhibited with other major Spanish artists including Picasso, Miró, and Dalí.
Today, Alvar is recognized on an international platform for his ability to convey the complex nature of human existence and the psychological complexities of art-making and creation. His works can be found in the permanent collection of over fourteen museums worldwide and has created several public commissions, including his most recent bronze sculpture created in honor of cellist Pablo Casals that can be found in Paris, France.
In 2014, Las Casa de Cultura (The Cultural Center) of Girona, Catalonia, Spain hosted a retrospective celebrating 50 years of artistic production by Alvar. One year later, Alvar had a second retrospective at the Castell de Benedormiens, in Castell d'Aro, Girona, Spain. Alvar strengthens his artistic vision through the use of various mediums, including oil paintings, lithographs, watercolors, drawings, bronzes, and ceramic bas relief sculptures. Alvar's influence, and the innovation of his artist presence in a Spanish and contemporary context, is undeniable.