Juan José Martínez Cánovas was born in Spain in 1980. His educational background includes the Academy of Fine Arts in both Spain and Rome and a Masters in research of new painting materials. ​ His work is influenced by the two great living Spanish artists he studied under: Pedro Cano and Antonio López García. Although a young artist, Martínez Cánovas has won numerous awards, exhibited widely in solo and group exhibitions and has works in numerous permanent collections in Spain including museums, universities and public buildings. ​ Martínez Cánovas’s fascination with existential anxiety and metamorphosis has shaped his interest in challenging and transforming the genre of portraiture, and can be seen in his work. His delicately handled graphite drawings on gesso are particularly striking in their transfigured subjects and technical virtuosity.