Fidel Aguilar i l'art europeu del seu temps: Elie Nadelman, Celso Lagar, Amedeo Modigliani
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Despite its scarcity and fragility, the work of the Catalan sculptor Fidel Aguilar (1894-1917) is surprising for, among others, the maturity he achieved and the extraordinary affinities that his work shares with that of some of the best European artists of his time. This article explores the aspects and relations his work has in common with that of three wellknown artists: Elie Nadelman (1882-1946), Celso Lagar (1891-1966) and Amedeo Modigliani (1884-1920). In the first part of the article, we review the possible contacts or direct influences that allowed the sculptor from Girona to know the work of the other three artists, either from personal contacts, from conversations with third parties, or from reproductions in magazines or newspapers. We then study the common aesthetic concepts between their respective works, which are mainly related to the selection of materials, the iconography and their common interest in primitivism and classicism. Finally, we evaluate some of the specific formal connections that can be detected in the sculptures, drawings and paintings made by these artists, which are explained precisely from the aforementioned conceptual affinities. The comparison between the respective works of these artists leads us to conclude that it is necessary to study the work of Aguilar in a broader framework than that provided by Noucentisme, because some of its features have more to do with, for example, an anticipation of Art Deco