Children bathing in a Canal

After spending many years in Paris working closely with artists such as Pissarro and Daubigny, Rico travelled to Venice with Fortuny in 1872. He was so impressed with the beauty of this magical city that he returned there for many summers. Venice, with its canals and the beautiful light that had attracted artists for centuries, provided Rico with the subject matter for many of his most important paintings. He was a regular exhibitor at the Paris Salon and in 1878 he was one of the organizers of the Spanish section of the World Exhibition. Rico's association with the successful Paris dealer, Goupil guaranteed him financial security and in fact, at the end of his life, he was able to purchase a palace in Venice. This is where he died in 1908, an appropriate ending for an artist who painted many of the most beautiful Venetian scenes in the 19th century.