WHAT ART CRITICS SAY ABOUT HIS PAINTINGS
Josep Ma. Cadena - Art Critic
I think that Manuel Blesa found himself to give himself to others through painting, when he decided to dedicate himself primarily to painting the still life of ceramics, which thanks to his sensitivity and the skill of his hands is the living matter that explains all kinds of feelings. Fruit bowls, plates, jars and other utensils give us transparencies and reflections that, combined with fruits, groups and furniture, welcome us to the home of the spirit that comes from before and continues into the future.
Isabel Coll Mirabent - Prof. Titular de Historia de Arte de la Universidad de Barcelona
Blesa searches for oppositions, contrasted values, sometimes only through the effects of vibrant white light, full of nuances. With wisdom and a sure effect, he finds in them the best field of expressing them. The execution of it is impeccable. It consists of the application of wide spot inks, animated by sensitive glazes, on closed and solid volumes, achieved through great attention to the contour and thanks to a firm and delicate modeling. The light bathes the objects where it is reflected and animates them with its contrasts. The light helps to order the compositions, balances them and gives them strength. A light that can be light or harsh, but that runs from object to object with great delicacy, like a soft touch.
François Antonovich - Historian and art critic, graduated from the School of the Louvre
Each composition of Blesa, slowly elaborated, is the fruit of a long reflection. He contemplates it in his own way and appreciates it in accordance with his innate conception of painting as it appears in the still lifes of the Golden Age. Blesa illustrates the earthy matter molded by the silent gestures of the peasants, representing the figure of the ancient bearer of wisdom , of patterned wrinkles and cracked by light. Blesa asks that time be devoted to him, that the viewer observe his paintings slowly, that he savor them one by one since his world made of austerity and discretion, patiently constructed, cannot be discovered at once.
Alfonso Zapater ( +31.5.2007 ) Escritor - Heraldo de Aragón
Like a sentinel who watches over the worship of the elements of his past, Blesa's desire can be defined as to capture the very special beauty of good ceramic pieces . Popular and ancient pottery (XV-XIX centuries) from Muel and Teruel, coppers, candlesticks, porcelain face dolls, wooden Christs, "cap and potes", a whole series of objects that cover not only his work, but also the spirit of Manuel Blesa.