Miquel Barceló
The Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Musée national Picasso-Paris organize a joint event dedicated to Miquel Barceló. Numerous pieces, never-presented before, allow visitors to discover the Majorcan artist’s universe. Paintings and ceramics are presented at the Musée national Picasso-Paris while the engraved works are put on display at the BnF.
Miquel Barceló’s engraved works that stand as a major part of the artist’s production are rarely presented. The artist, painter, sculptor and ceramist, has also been trying his hand at printing techniques since the beginning of his career. Rich and deeply original, his printed works gather nearly 250 copper and wood engravings, lithographs, screen prints and stampings. Although a self-sufficient part of the artist’s production, these pieces remain an integral part of his protean work because of their fundamentally experimental dimension.
The BnF naturally decided to present this little-known part of his work in parallel with drawings, sculptures, ceramics and paintings. Visitors are invited to follow a thematic path built around a selection of 60 recent or very old prints accounting for the coherence and singularity of his artistic approach.
A monumental fresco made of soil and daylight was created in situ across the full height of the windows of the Julien Cain alley that the artist covered with a fine coat of clay before scraping the dried material. An outstanding introduction to the exhibition, this 190 metre-length over 6-metre high fresco immerses visitors in Barceló’s bewitching universe.