Venice Houses

Julio Visconti, is a painter born in Fiñana (Almería province, Andalusia, Spain) in June 1922, specialized in watercolor.

After starting in various trades, he began to study arts at the Almería School of Arts and Crafts, where he would receive classes from Juan Cuadrado. In 1945 he moved to Madrid, where he would be indoctrinated by the veteran and award-winning Valencian artist Ramón Mateu Montesinos (1891-1981).

In 1962 he made contact with watercolor to which he would tirelessly dedicate himself throughout his life. That same year he joined the Spanish Association of Watercolorists, then located on Calle de Libreros in Madrid. Three years later, in 1965, he will exhibit for the first time in the capital Almería, with enormous success.

The 70s are those of his creative fullness, creating intense watercolors, from which blinding light emerges. In them, Visconti shows marine and port landscapes, as well as scenes from his native Almería and the La Chanca neighborhood. In 1972 he obtained a grant from the General Directorate of the Sahara, which sent him to the old Spanish colony to paint from life and illustrate the landscape.

He also practiced sculpture occasionally.

Among the awards he obtained throughout his career, it is worth highlighting the I Watercolor Prize of Painters and Sculptors of Africa (Madrid, 1966), the Prize of the I Almeriense Painting Salon (1970) and the National Watercolor Prize (Valladolid, 1974).

In September 2008 he was named Adoptive Son of the city of Almería. The foundation that bears his name will convert his house and studio, located in the Palace of the Countess of Belalcázar de Guadix (Granada province, Andalusia), into a museum dedicated to his work. Since this year he belongs to the Almeria Association of Watercolorists, being an honorary member of it.