Marià Vayreda i Vila (Olot, 1853-1903). Painter and writer. Brother of the painter Joaquim Vayreda, he is known as Marian Vayreda. He studied at the Escola de Dibuix d'Olot (Olot School of Drawing) after the revolution of September 1868 prevented him from entering the University of Barcelona. Along with his brothers he was involved in the Third Carlist War, after which he went into exile in France. He studied painting in France and at the School of Fine Arts in Barcelona. When he returned to Olot he was involved in the foundation of the religious imagery workshop, El Arte Cristiano, which he directed from 1894 onwards.
Gradually he swayed away from painting and began to write. He participated in the cultural life of Olot by founding, among others, the magazine, El olotense, later named L'olotí, and the Institut Olotí de les Artes, les Ciències i les indústries (Olot Institute for Art, Science and Industry), which became the Escola d'Olot de Pintura (Olot School of Painting).
In 1891 he published his first story, El roure dels penjats, in La Veu de Catalunya (a newspaper) after which he continued to write more tales and short stories in various magazines and newspapers of the time. In 1902 his first novel, Sang nova, was published and after his death two years later, La punyalada was published which then became a benchmark of literary realism.