The Foundation receives a donation of a cross by Adolf Fargnoli

Tuesday, September 30, 2025

It was part of Fargnoli's exhibition at the Galeries Laietanes in 1922

The Rafael Masó Foundation has just received the donation of one of Adolf Fargnoli’s famous crosses: it is a Cross with the Evangelists, dated December 19, 1922. Several crosses similar to this one are known, commonly referred to as the “Romanesque cross,” and they all bear the same frontal inscription: “To those who have God, everything is in abundance; those who do not are the poorest,” or a similar version. They also feature four black ceramic plaques from Can Marcó in Quart with the tetramorph, the four symbols representing the evangelists.

Other examples of this crucifix by Fargnoli with the same inscription belong to the collection of the Museum of History of Girona (dated 1917 and 1925, the latter having belonged to Carles Rahola), the Molins Monells Collection in Molins de Rei (1919), and the Consol Oltra Collection in Barcelona (1950). As is customary in all of Fargnoli’s works, the cross is signed on the back with pyrography, and it bears the inscription “Gerona 19-12-1922.” In addition, a label from the Galeries Laietanes in Barcelona was also found on the reverse, which strongly suggests that Fargnoli exhibited and sold it at the exhibition he held there in late December 1922.

The donation was made by Anna Pagans, former mayor of Girona and former president of the Foundation, who had inherited it from her parents. It will be displayed in one of the bedrooms of Casa Masó. This is the second cross by Fargnoli to enter the Foundation’s collections, which already included another crucifix from 1924.

At the end of 2023 and beginning of 2024, the Foundation and the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya organized a major exhibition on Adolf Fargnoli, first presented at Casa Masó and later in Barcelona, curated by Pilar Vélez. “Adolf Fargnoli (1890-1951). From Noucentisme to the Avant-Garde” was the first anthological exhibition dedicated to his work. Born in La Bisbal d’Empordà in 1890, Fargnoli was a fascinating figure who, during his lifetime, was regarded as one of the most representative craftsmen of Noucentisme and achieved international fame with his wooden boxes and crosses, unique objects that are now collectors’ pieces. Masó was his discoverer and promoted his work in articles and exhibitions, as well as connecting him with key figures such as the ceramist Marcó and the Galeries Laietanes in Barcelona, where he held several exhibitions. During the postwar years Fargnoli fell into oblivion, but he is now revealed as an artist who deserves to be reconsidered as a creator of delicate and poetic objects, as well as a pioneering graphic designer.