A grand exhibition, Joan Mirò. Between Art and Poetry (working title) is a unique journey into the creative life of one of the greatest artists of the 20th century, Joan Mirò. His abstract art perpetually provokes primitive, dreamlike, sometimes whimsical ,and surreal worlds. On show is a selection of more than 200 exceptional, original artworks on loan from the leading institutions and museums preserving Mirò’s oeuvre, such as the Fundació Pilar i Joan Miró of Mallorca and the Fundació Joan Miró of Barcelona. The selection includes paintings, sculpture, rare personally-illustrated books of poetry, vintage photographs and graphic works, focusing on significant passages in Mirò’s lifelong artistic quest. The variety of the artworks on show testify to the extraordinary versatility of the artist to mix different forms of art – painting, literature, poetry, sculpture, drawing, graphics, collage, and theatre.
The exhibition also reveals Mirò as a man, highlighting the three pillars of his personal ethics: respect for nature and ecological convictions that reflect today’s “environmental sustainability”; political freedom against any form of tyranny; and the continuous innovation of his artistic language. A series of multimedia devices enrich the extraordinary corpus of original artworks through video-interviews with people who knew Mirò and/or personally worked with him, unveiling personal traits and lesser-known facts of his life.
Of particular significance is the selection of rare illustrated books by the artist on show that distinguishes this exhibition. Evocative poetic verses by important poets of the 20th century are expressed in visual terms by Mirò. They are the portal to delve into the relationship between Art and Poetry that Mirò pursued throughout his long artistic path, establishing meaningful relationships and true friendships with the protagonists of the 20th century literary and artistic scene, such as Tristan Tzara, Paul Éluard or Jacques Prévert – to mention a few.
