Camarón, José

He was from a family of artists of Aragonese origin and the son of baroque sculptor Nicolás Camarón. He studied with his father, and also in Valencia. He garnered some success and was appointed Academician of Merit at the Academy of San Fernando in 1762, and at the Academy of San Carlos in Valencia when it was founded in 1768. After becoming its director of painting in 1790 he was appointed general director in 1796. He made a considerable number of religious paintings as well as what Orellana described as "festive paintings, damsels, masks and figures in witty, graceful and elegant compositions," which have sometimes been mistaken for works by Paret. He left abundant drawings, some of which were preparatory sketches for paintings and others for engravings, which he also made at times (Pérez Sánchez, A. E.: 1977, p. 14).
Adela Espinós (José Camarón Bonanat 1731-1803, Castellón, Generalitat valenciana, 2005) corrects the name by which he was known until then: José Camarón y Boronat.