Antonio Juez Nieto (1893-1963). Pinceladas biográficas

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Abstract

Antonio Juez Nieto (1893-1963), painter, illustrator and writer from Badajoz, pursued a unique career marked by an early vocation, a strong bond with his mother, and his contact with the artistic circles of Madrid, Barcelona and Paris. Initially trained in Badajoz, he later joined modernist and decadentist groups in the capital, befriending artists and writers such as Álvaro Retana and José de Zamora. His work, rooted in symbolism and decadentism, was expressed in illustrations for magazines such as La Esfera and Mundo Gráfico, and in paintings that combined sensuality, religiosity and social critique. From 1928 onwards, he taught at the School of Arts and Crafts of Badajoz, the city he never abandoned. His literary works, including Cerebro y corazón and Soy un pobre peregrino, reveal an introspective and moralizing spirit, influenced by Wilde, Kempis and Spanish mysticism. In his final years he became Head Gardener of Badajoz, a role in which he earned public recognition and affection. Juez’s career reflects the dialogue between cosmopolitan modernity and provincial rootedness, between dandyesque attitudes and spirituality, making him one of the most distinctive figures in twentieth-century Extremaduran culture.