Hans Grass, 20 years

Hans came to Formentera at Easter 1965, with Juliane and me, a two-year-old girl. When we arrived at the port of Ibiza, I said "Now we are in summer".

Known as Carlitos Marx, Santa Claus and Moses, he lived on the island until his death on February 3rd, 1998, falling in love with its particular austere beauty, its intense colours, the simple pleasures of a people in harmony with nature.

The feeling of being constantly on holiday in a place dedicated to tourism, the diversity of the people he met and his spiritual concerns shaped his work.

As a tireless creator, he left us a legacy of thousands of drawings and watercolours, about a hundred paintings, etchings and manuscripts.

It is a legacy with two tasks, the pleasure of enjoying it and the responsibility to maintain, catalogue and preserve its memory and that of its work.

We would now like to share this small selection of his work with you. I have chosen the Apocalypse, which reflects his concern for the maltreated planet, some portraits of people who stayed on the island and show his fascination for people (especially women), his vision of love, his observation of island and dream figures and his observation of small everyday scenes.

He enjoyed life, enjoys his work!

Tanja Grass, Formentera, March 18th, 2018