Antonio Alegre Cremades (2 June 1939 – 15 October 2006) was a Spanish painter, engraver, and professor. His works are preserved in public collections such as the Museu d'Art Contemporani Vicente Aguilera Cerni (MACVAC) and the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando (Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando).
Early life and education Alegre Cremades was born in Alginet, Valencia, in 1939. He studied at the School of San Carlos in Valencia, where he later taught. He was also part of the founding board of the (Chair of Emeritus Professors of the Valencian Community).
Career His early works were linked to figurative and academic painting. From the 1970s, he developed a series titled (The Man and the Machine), exploring the relationship between human beings and technology. This body of work was later described by the Diputación de Valencia (Provincial Council of Valencia) as (“human futurism”).
In 2013, the MuVIM (Valencian Museum of Illustration and Modernity) exhibited a retrospective titled (Unpublished Work from the 1970s), which brought together more than thirty works from this series.
His work has also been exhibited at the Ateneo Mercantil de Valencia (Mercantile Athenaeum of Valencia).
Publications In 2009, the Institució Alfons el Magnànim published a monograph about his life and work, titled (The Passion for Art: Antonio Alegre Cremades). The same year, the newspaper Levante-EMV reported on another monograph focusing on his engravings.
Studies and recognition The philosopher and art critic Román de la Calle included Alegre Cremades in his book (12 Contemporary Valencian Artists in the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Carlos) (2008). In this study, he described himself as “a genuine painter and poet of the image” who sought “to transfigure reality into symbols, using the plastic arts as his basic resource”.
Death Alegre Cremades died on 15 October 2006 in Valencia. His death was reported by national newspapers such as "El Confidencial" and "ABC".
References
External links MACVAC – Artist profile Real Academia de San Fernando – Author file MuVIM – Exhibition 2013 Ateneo Mercantil de Valencia – Exhibition