The monographic exhibition María Blanchard: A Painter Despite Cubism presents a chronological survey of the different stages of the life and career of this painter from Santander. A modern artist, Blanchard settled permanently in Paris in 1916 after completing her studies and developed a Cubist phase in which figurative references never entirely disappeared. Childhood, solitude, sadness and illness are recurring themes in her work and, at the same time, reflections of her own life.

The work of María Blanchard (1881–1932) was not adequately recognised within the cultural context of her time, when artistic work by women was often regarded as inferior. The exhibition highlights the symbolic richness, formal complexity and profound social commitment present throughout Blanchard’s relatively short artistic career.