José María Rodríguez Losada

He was born on July 20, 1826, in Seville. From an early age, he received practical instruction from a drawing teacher and later studied at the School of Fine Arts in Seville, followed by the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando. He worked in Cádiz and in Jerez de la Frontera, where his artistic production flourished thanks to high demand and a loyal clientele. Among his works were the so-called “cuadros de almuerzo”, paintings intended for sale to support his family. One of his notable pieces, “Rodrigo Calderón, en el tormento” (P006954), dates from 1865 and was exhibited at the Salon organized by the newspaper “El Globo” in 1882 and later at the 1892 National Exhibition of Fine Arts.

In 1868, he moved to Córdoba, where he opened a drawing and painting academy on Calle de las Pavas, later relocating it to Calle San Pablo. In 1870, he was commissioned by the Friendship Circle in Córdoba to depict the Batalla de Alcolea, a project he had previously proposed to the city council. This painting is currently held by the Royal Academy of History. He returned to Jerez in 1873, though he maintained strong ties with Córdoba.

He became the first director of the newly founded Academy of Fine Arts of Santo Domingo in Jerez de la Frontera, where he also served as a professor of Life Drawing, Colour Theory, and Composition.

His artistic practice encompassed historical, genre, religious, and portrait painting. He was known for his sharp memory for details and moments, as well as for his swift execution with the brush. In 1883, he was named Knight of the Order of Santiago and corresponding member of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando.

Losada was entrusted with painting 17 historicist oil paintings for the Reception Hall—now the Salón Liceo—of the Friendship Circle in Córdoba. This commission, part of a larger expansion project, aimed to “complete the space with oil paintings that would depict, as stipulated by the board, the most notable and historic events that took place in the city.” The hall was inaugurated in 1867 with appropriate furnishings and wall moldings designed to frame these works. Among them is the painting “Entrada del Santo Rey Fernando en Córdoba”.

He participated in numerous art exhibitions between 1843 and 1892, including the Exhibition of the Economic Society of Friends of the Country in Seville, the Exhibition of the Academy of Fine Arts of Santa Isabel of Hungary in Seville, the Regional Exhibition of Cádiz, the Exhibition of Fine Arts in Jerez, the National Exhibition of Fine Arts, the Universal Exposition in Paris, or the Salon of the newspaper “El Globo”. Through these events, he received several prestigious awards and recognitions.

He passed away on April 2, 1896.