LUIS RICARDO FALERO- SPAIN

HARRY CLARKE - IRELAND

IVAN ALBRIGHT- UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

FRANCIS BACON- IRELAND

EDWARD GOREY.- UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

ODD NERDRUM.- SWEDEN

LUIS RICARDO FALERO   (1851- 1896 )

HE WAS BORN IN GRANADA.

AS HE CAME FROM A WEALTHY FAMILY, AT THE AGE OF NINE HE WAS SENT TO CONTINUE HIS STUDIES IN PARIS.

HE CAME BACK TO SPAIN WHEN HE WAS FOURTEEN YEARS OLD, TO ENLIST IN THE NAVY, FOLLOWING HIS FATHER'S WISHES. BUT TWO YEARS LATER HE QUIT TO STUDY INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING AND CHEMISTRY IN RICHMOND UNIVERSITY, ENGLAND.

IT SEEMS THAT HIS EXPERIMENTS IN THIS AREA, WHERE A LITTLE BIT DANGEROUS, SO HE DECIDED TO COMMIT HIS LIFE TO PAINTING ,WHICH WAS HIS GREATEST PASSION.

AT LAST, HE SETTLED IN LONDON, WHERE HE WAS WELL KNOWN FOR HIS ORIGINAL FEMALE NUDES WITH FANTASTIC, MYTHOLOGICAL, AND ORIENTAL SETTINGS.

WITH ONE FOOT OVER ASIA AND THE OTHER ONE OVER AFRICA, BRALERGODA LOWERED HIS HEAD TO WATCH THE TIDES COMING AND GOING BETWEEN HIS LEGS. WITH THE LEFT HAND IN SHADOWS, DEEP IN THE NIGHT, AND THE RIGHT ONE SPARKLING WHITE, UNDER THE RAYS OF THE DYING SUN, HE LIFTS HIS HEAD TO OBSERVE THE SWIFT PASSING OF TIME. HE CAN DISCERN ITS FAST MOVEMENT HURTING THE HEART OF THE PURPLE AND PINK CLOUDS CROSSING WILDLY THE DEEP- BLUE SKY, HIDING WITHIN ,RANDOM STARS AND THE MISTERIES OF THIS INFINITE UNIVERSE... INFINITE?...HE SHAKES HIS HEAD...NO WAY! HE KNOWS WHERE THE LIMITS ARE. HE HAS BEEN THERE, GOING THROUGH INNUMERABLE VOID SPACES, DIVING IN THE BLACK-WATER OCEANS, REACHING THE GODS' DWELLINGS BEHIND MIRRORED LABIRYNTHS, REFLECTING THE DARK, UNKNOWN GALAXIES OVER AND OVER AGAIN.... HE KNOWS ONE DAY, HE WILL FEEL COMPELLED TO THROW A ROCK AT THAT DECEIVING LOOKING- GLASS, HURTING EVERY HUMAN BEING WITH THE BROKEN PIECES AND THE PIERCING STAB OF TRUTH.

HARRY CLARKE (1889- 1931 )

IRUSH STAINED GLASS ARTIST AND BOOK ILLUSTRATOR.

HE IS FAMOUS FOR HIS ILLUSTRATION FOR EDGAR ALLAN POE'S 'TALES OF MISTERY AND IMAGINATION', PUBLISHED IN 1923.

THIS WORK WAS FOLLOWED BY 'THE YEARS OF SPRING', 'FAIRY TALES OF PERRAULT' AND GOETHE'S 'FAUST'.

HIS FINAL WORK WAS 'SELECTED POEMS' BY SWINBURN, PUBLISHED IN 1928.

WHILE SKETCHING AND DRAWING HE WORKED ON THE DESIGNS OF MORE THAN 130 STAINED GLASS WINDOWS ,TOGETHER WITH HIS BROTHER WALTER.

HE DIED VERY YOUNG, WORN DOWN BY THE PACE OF HIS WORK AND BY INHALING TOXIC CHEMICALS USED IN STAINED GLASS. HIS BROTHER DIED A YEAR LATER.

IT'S HALF PAST ONE
TAKE OFF YOUR MASK
IT'S TIME FOR SHOWING
YOUR TRUE-SELF, LASS!
I KNOW YOU WOULD
LAUGH AT MY FACE.
IT'S NOT MY FAULT
SUCH BIG DISGRACE.

IVAN ALBRIGHT  ( 1897- 1983 )

IVAN LE LORRAINE ALBRIGHT WAS AN AMERICAN PAINTER WHO USED MAGIC REALISM FOR HIS CHARACTER STUDIOS, PORTRAITS AND STILL LIFES.

HE WAS A PRINTER AND ENGRAVER AS WELL, AND STUDIED ARCHITECTURE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS.

HE HAD A TWIN BROTHER, MELVIN WHO BECAME A SCULPTOR, STUDYNG AT THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO. AT THE SAME TIME IVAN STUDIED PAINTING

ALBRIGHT WAS WELL KNOWN FOR HIS 'DARK' STILL LIFES FULL OF INTRICATE DETAILS. SOME OF THEM WERE FINISHED WITH A ONE-HAIR BRUSH. ONE OF HIS MASTERPIECES, 'THE DOOR', TOOK HIM TEN YEARS TO COMPLETE.

I AM THE MAN
THAT NEVER DIES
MY LIFE LEANS ON
DECEIVING LIES.

FOREVER YOUNG,
FOREVER COLD,
FEARLESS OF TIME,
OF GETTING OLD. 

MY HANDSOME FACE
IS FULL OF SMILES...
IN ITS RECESS
MY PORTRAIT CRIES.

FRANCIS BACON (1909- 1992 )

FRANCIS BACON WAS A BRITISH PAINTER AND DESIGNER THAT, ALTHOUG HE NEVER ATTENDED SCHOLL, BEGAN PAINTING WITH WATERCOLOUR AT AN EARLY AGE.

IN HIS EARLY TWENTY'S HE STABLISHED HIMSELF AS AN INTERIOR AND FURNITURE DESIGNER, SELLING FURNITURE, RUGS AN PAINTINGS IN HIS OWN STUDIO.

DURING THE 1930'S HE EXHIBITED HIS WORKS IN THE MAYOR GALLERY AND THE SUNDERLAND HOUSE IN LONDON.

IN THE EARLY 40'S HE DESTROYED MANY OF HIS WORKS , BUT JUST AFTER WORLD WAR II ,HE BEGAN PAINTING AGAIN.

HIS FULL MATURE STYLE WAS DEVELOPED DURING THE 50'S, DEPICTING MANY OF HIS FRIENDS AND LOVERS AND FAMOUS PEOPLE IN INCREDIBLE OR ABNORMAL SETTINGS. HE ALSO MADE REPRODUCTIONS OF HISTORICAL PAINTINGS LIKE THE PORTRAIT OF POPE INNOCENT X AFTER VELAZQUEZ.

HE ALSO PAINTED FROM MEDICAL PHOTOS AND ACTORS OR MOVIE STILLS.

HIS WORK IN KNOWN FOR ITS CRUDE REALITY DISGUISED BEHIND DISTORTED HUMAN FORMS.

EDWARD GOREY ( 1925- 2000 )

EDWARD GOREY WAS AN AMERICAN WRITER, ILLUSTRATOR AND DESIGNER.

HE WORKED AS AN ILLUSTRATOR FOR DOUBLEDAY, PUBLISHING MANY DRAWINGS. HIS ASIGNED WORKS RANGED FROM STOKER'S 'DRACULA' TO WELL'S 'THE WAR OF THE WORLDS'.

HE IS WELL KNOWN FOR HIS DARK AND ENTHRALLING DRAWINGS.

IN 1977 HE WON THE TONY AWARD FOR BEST COSTUME DESIGN IN 'DRACULA'.

AS A WRITER HE PRODUCED MANY SCREENPLAYS AND VARIOUS BOOKS ( MORE THAN 100), SOME OF THEM WORDLESS.

THE RECLUSIVE GOREY WAS A LONER. HE RESIDED IN CAPE COD IN WHAT HE CALLED 'THE ELEPHANT HOUSE'. HE DIED THERE, ON APRIL 15, 2000

THE BLOODY VAMPIRE
STOLE MY LIFE
AND TO KEEP GOING 
I HAD TO STRIFE
SPENDING EVENINGS
ROAMING THE DECKS
IN SEARCH OF SAILORS
AND WHITISH NECKS.

IS IMMORTALITY
THE PRIZE I GOT?
FOREVER THIRSTY
FOR FRESH RED BLOOD.

ODD NERDRUM (1944 )

ODD NERDRUM IS CATALOGUED AS A NORWEGIAN PAINTER ALTHOUGH HE WAS BORN IN SWEDEN.

HE STUDIED CLASSICAL PAINTING IN THE ART ACADEMY OF OSLO, NORWAY, AND LATER WITH JOSEPH BEUYIS IN NEW YORK.

NOWADAYS HE IS ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS FIGURATIVE PAINTERS.

DAVID BOWIE IS THE OWNER OF 'DAWN', AND THE WELL-KNOWN HORROR FILM 'THE CELL', CONTAINS A SCENE INFLUENCED BY THIS PICTURE.

Poems by E.de C.