Rhythms of Gesture and Imagination is the title of an exhibition of paintings by Antonio Saura, one of Spain's greatest artists. The works on display were painted 1977-1997.

Saura (1930-1998) was a self-taught artist who started painting in 1947 while suffering tuberculosis. From 1953 to 1955, Saura lived in Paris, where he was associated with surrealism and Art Informel. After returning to Spain, he abandoned surrealism and gravitated towards French esthetics and American abstract expressionism. In 1957, Saura formed the El Paso group and mapped out his own artistic path, based on the rules of Art Informel abstraction. From then on, he pursued expressive, ecstatic art that exposed subconscious motivations and brought out the beauty hidden in phenomena that were commonly regarded as repulsive. He gradually reduced the range of colors in his paintings to black, white, gray and brown. Working on portraits and crowd scenes, he visited destruction on his painted subjects.

The legacy of Saura includes the famous Imaginary Portraits series (portraits of Spanish King Philip II in the manner of Velazquez) and Goya's Dog. He also worked in photography and set design, alongside his brother, film director Carlos Saura.

M.H.

BWA Gallery of Contemporary Art in Katowice, 6 Wojciecha Korfantego Ave., open until April 18