Joan Miró: London-Barcelona-Washington

London’s Tate Modern hosted until September 11 the blockbuster exhibition Joan Miró: The Ladder of Escape. In fact, the display was conceived by Tate’s curators Matthew Gale and Marko Daniel with the collaboration of Teresa Montaner, Joan Miró Foundation’s curator.

Following  the amazing reception by the public (303,000 visitors), the collection traveled to Barcelona, where it gained special meaning, since it is the most important exhibition of Miró’s work staged in Spain over the last twenty years, and shows the artist’s commitment to the time that felt to his lot to live.

The exhibition was unveiled this Sunday 16. The public will finally was able to enjoy the 170 pieces (paintings, sculptures and paper works) included in the display and that are part of public and private collections from all over the world.

Joan Miró (Barcelona 1893 – Palma 1983) is one of the most representative artists of his time. He developed a surrealist language of symbols that suggest feelings of singular freedom and energy. He lived through turbulent times, though, and the exhibition, apart from showing some of his most significant and hard to find works, traces key moments of his career. Therefore, the curators propose various sections reviewing a nearly sixty-year-long period. The first halls explore the bonds with his birth Catalonia natal, as well as his encounter with surrealism; the central area points to the influence of the Spanish Civil War drama in a new pictorial language; the last section covers the last years of the Franco dictatorship. In each case, Miró’s sensibility and stance towards events that marked the history of the 20th century are quite clear.

Due to the importance of the exhibition, the Joan Miró Foundation has launched a broad program of activities involving several institutions and entities of the country. Among the initiatives is the Joan Miró. Posters of a time, of a country, at the Museum of History of Catalonia (October 16, 2011 – March 18, 2012). For further information visit www.fundaciomiro-bcn.org

After closing its doors on March 18, the Joan Miró. The Ladder of Escape will travel to Washington’s National Gallery of Art, where it will be open for visits as of May.

Joan Miró Foundation

Parc de Montjuïc s/n

08038 Barcelona

Source: Press release, Joan Miró Foundation