Criticism – Isidre Roset

José Domènech Sanchez: Sensibility and deconstruction

The painter side of the artist expresses himself through his paintings. Images created by the artist show his principles. According to Domènech, his own works are the result of  research into the materials he uses and above all, the expression of a sensitivity to his or his model’s feelings that the artist absorbs and conveys onto the canvas.

When talking to the artist his calm, pleasant and relaxed temper are surprising. He claims to be an artisan above all, without showing off, or boasting about his several awards. He is only proud of his honest and sincere work, which is evident from his paintings.

The paintings of Domènech are full of simplicity. Their making may be complicated, yet their message remains simple; his paintings talk directly to our soul, thanks to sight and touch. Flat and shining surfaces contrast with their appearance of a bumpy texture, and the use of chiaroscuro, which expresses Domènech favourite images: simple arguments.

In this formal analysis, we realize that the work of Domènech starts from an extraordinary technique, a practical mode of work discovered by the artist himself which he uses to express the materialization of universal values such as spiritual peace, the humility of substances, the beauty of the human body. He simply achieves this goal by depicting only a human body, a landscape or a still life.

Therefore, we find ourselves before an artist with his own technique due to his education and family origins. He is an artist who paints with the help of composite materials. Like a sculptor who discovers the image contained in raw marble, Domènech engenders the figure from that inert magma of paint by eliminating and wearing away, making marks appear on the surface that incite the imagination.

This new and unusual process of elaboration in comparison to traditional painting is noticeable in any of his paintings. His works darken near the edges and lighten using brown and ochre tonalities until they define the main object, face, body, tree, or piece of porcelain. This definition contrasts with the undone background from which the subject emerges. It appears out of the same colours and material composition but different in concept and different by the distinctive will of the creator. Domènech is an artist who tends to an affectionate minimalism; an artist who searches for emotional warmth in current objects and an artist who catches the moment in which substance becomes sensitivity.

Isidre Roset I Juan

University Degree in History of Art and Art Review