An oil painting of circus performers by Emilio Grau Sala

An oil painting of circus performers by Emilio Grau Sala, featuring circus performers, including a dancer in a white tutu on a painted blue stage, with a gilt horse’s head roundel, a further dancer in a black tutu and a ‘clown blanc’ behind her, in the background the ring master leaning against the ticket desk.  Spanish, circa 1960.

Provenance: LORD GRADE OF ELSTREE Kt, OStJ, KCSS

Emilio (Emi) Grau Sala (1911 – 1975) was a Catalan painter who studied at the Escuela de Bellas Artes de Barcelona.  At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, he fled to Paris with his wife, the Catalan surrealist painter, Ángeles Santos Torroella.  He was a famous colourist in various media including  oils, watercolours and pastels, and illustrator.