An exhibition of seventy-nine monumental sculptures of the Catalan Surrealist artist Joan Miró (1893-1983) recently opened at the Yorkshire Sculpture Garden in Britain.  Miró, one of the most important 20^th century artists, was able to convey his deep preoccupation for humankind and his strong sense of national identity through a colorful, fresh and joyous approach. Amazingly, the artist was already in his seventies and eighties when he created the majority of his fantastic bronze sculptures depicting playful monsters.

This is the second UK exhibition devoted to the artist in nearly 50 years, after last year’s major retrospective “Joan Miró: The Ladder of Escape” held at the Tate in London.  This retrospective featuring over 150 paintings, works on paper and sculptures, was recently shown at the Fundació Joan Miró in Barcelona and will travel next month to the National Art Gallery in Washington D.C.  The title of the show comes from a painting, one of a series called Constellations, the artist started in 1939 when the Nazi forces were advancing into France. At the time Miró was living in Normandy and it is said that these paintings were rolled under his arm when he and his family caught the last train out of Paris for Spain. The exhibition also showcases masterpieces such as The Hope of a Condemned Man triptych, done during the artist’s internal exile in Spain under Franco’s regime.

By the way, we will have the opportunity to see “Joan Miró: The Ladder of Escape”during our upcoming Washington Art Trip 2012 (August 2-6)! A great way to spend August’s long weekend (Canada’s civic day). Here is the link with all the details:

https://walkthearts.com/_art_tours/art_tour_washington.shtml

Joan Miro, The Hope of a Condemned Man triptych,1973