| Ramon Casas and Pere Romeu on a Tandem | |
| Medium: | Oil on canvas |
| Artist: | Ramon Casas i Carbó |
| Height Metric: | 191 |
| Width Metric: | 215 |
| City: | Barcelona |
| Museum: | Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya |
Ramon Casas and Pere Romeu on a Tandem is a painting by Ramon Casas in exhibition at the National Art Museum of Catalonia in Barcelona.
Casas painted Ramon Casas and Pere Romeu on a Tandem in 1897 specifically for the interior of Els Quatre Gats, a bar that was at the center of the Modernisme art movement in Barcelona.[1] It depicts Casas and Pere Romeu, one of the promoters of Els Quatre Gats, on a tandem bicycle against the Barcelona skyline. Casas is seen in profile with his pipe, while Romeu looks directly at the viewer.[2] Although painted on canvas, the composition has the graphic quality of a huge poster with its bold drawing and simplified forms, reflecting the fact that the artist was a skilled poster designer and illustrator.[3]
The original inscription in Catalan on the right side of the painting, which was later cut off, read "to ride a bicycle, you can't go with your back straight."[1] The message described the attitude of the bar founders (two of whom are depicted here), that in order to make progress, you must break with tradition, as was done at Els Quatre Gats. In 1901, this painting was replaced with another large composition by Casas, entitled Ramon Casas and Pere Romeu in an Automobile, in which the tandem bicycle has given way to a car, symbolizing the new century.[1] When reproductions of the two paintings appeared in the magazine Pel & Ploma, they were referred to as The End of the 19th Century and The Beginning of the 20th Century, respectively.[4]
| Museum or gallery | scope=col | City | scope=col | Title | scope=col | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1897-1900 | Barcelona | |||||
| 1958 | Barcelona | Ramon Casas | ||||
| 1969 | Madrid | El Modernismo en España | ||||
| 1970 | Barcelona | El Modernismo en España | ||||
| 1978 | Els Quatre Gats. Art in Barcelona around 1900 | [5] | ||||
| 1978 | Els Quatre Gats. Art in Barcelona around 1900 | |||||
| 1979 | Picasso e dintorni. I Quattro Gatti. Il Modernismo catalano | |||||
| 1980 | Madrid | Cien años de cultura catalana 1880–1980 | ||||
| 1981–1982 | Barcelona | Picasso i Barcelona 1881–1981 | ||||
| 1982 | Madrid | Picasso i Barcelona 1881–1981 | ||||
| 1982 | Barcelona | Picasso i Barcelona 1881–1981 | ||||
| 1982 | Palau de la Virreina | Barcelona | Exposicion Ramon Casas | |||
| 1983 | Barcelona Museum of Modern Art | Barcelona | Els Autoretrats del Museu d'Art Modern | |||
| 1984 | Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux | 50 ans d'art espagnol 1880–1936 | ||||
| 1985–1986 | Homage to Barcelona. The city and its art 1888–1936 | [6] | ||||
| 1987 | Palau de la Virreina | Barcelona | Homage to Barcelona. The city and its art 1888–1936 | |||
| 1987 | The Prefectural Museum of Modern Art | Homage to Barcelona. The city and its art 1888–1936 | ||||
| 1987 | The Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura | Homage to Barcelona. The city and its art 1888–1936 | ||||
| 1987 | Homage to Barcelona. The city and its art 1888–1936 | |||||
| 1990–1991 | Barcelona Museum of Modern Art | Barcelona | El Modernisme | |||
| 1992 | Barcelona | Art i esport a Catalunya | ||||
| 1995–1996 | Barcelona | Picasso i els 4 Gats. La clau de la modernitat | ||||
| 2001 | Barcelona | Ramon Casas. El pintor del moderinsme | [7] | |||
| 2001 | Mapfre Vida Cultural Foundation | Madrid | Ramon Casas. El pintor del moderinsme | |||
| 2001 | Paris | Paris Barcelone de Gaudi a Miró | ||||
| 2002 | Museu Picasso | Barcelona | Paris Barcelona 1888–1937 | |||
| 2006–2007 | Barcelona and Modernity: Picasso, Gaudi, Miró, and Dalí | [8] | ||||
| 2007 | Barcelona and Modernity: Picasso, Gaudi, Miró, and Dalí | |||||