The Museu de Valls in Valls, Catalonia, is starting its autumn programme with two significant cultural events in September. An exhibition honouring artist Leonardo Escoda opened on 16 September, and a book about Elvira Homs Ferrés will be presented on 19 September.
“Demana imatge” (Request Image), the exhibition dedicated to Escoda, is part of the wider “Mira Leonardo” (Look Leonardo) cycle. This series of activities is led by the Tarragona Provincial Council's School of Art and Culture, with other institutions from the Camp de Tarragona and Terres de l'Ebre regions also taking part. Four exhibitions will open simultaneously in Reus, Tarragona, and Valls.
These locations include the Palau Bofarull in Reus, the Museum of Modern Art in Tarragona, the Museu de Valls, and the Tarragona Provincial Council's School of Art and Culture in Valls, located in the Sant Roc building.
Escoda's Award-Winning Work
The Museu de Valls will show Escoda's work “Demana imatge”, which won the Guasch-Coranty Prize in 2001. This prize was organised by the Valls City Foundation with the museum's involvement. The piece consists of twelve paintings, each measuring 47 x 47 cm. At the same time, the Tarragona Provincial Council's School of Art and Culture in Valls will display the work Escoda created in 2002 for the Sant Roc Chapel.
Leonardo Escoda, who lived from 1956 to 2022, was also known as a cultural organiser and a teacher at the Provincial Council's School of Art and Design in Tortosa. He was committed to the region, initiating projects like the “Maig a l’Escola” (May at School) lecture series. He also promoted many exhibitions, giving visibility to both emerging and established artists.
Rediscovering Elvira Homs
The second main event for the Museu de Valls' new term is the presentation of the book “Elvira Homs Ferrés. L’art vivent” (Elvira Homs Ferrés. Living Art). This event will take place on 19 September at 7pm in the old Popular Library. Written by art critic Assum Cardona, the book brings attention back to Elvira Homs (1907-1987).
Homs was the daughter of Lluís Homs from Valls and the painter Maria Ferrés, also known as Maria Freser. Elvira Homs debuted with an exhibition at Galeries Dalmau in Barcelona in 1929. Despite positive critical reception, her career was cut short in 1934, and her name has been largely forgotten for over ninety years. The book now aims to restore her rightful place in Catalan art history. This presentation is part of the “Maria Freser. Cròniques des del balcó” (Maria Freser. Chronicles from the Balcony) exhibition, which the Museu de Valls has dedicated to Elvira Homs' mother in recent months.
The Museu de Valls also noted that the exhibition dedicated to Maria Freser will close on 21 September, and the exhibition on Grup Taüll will conclude on 28 September.
