How does the Dependence on Political Conflicts Help Influence Miro’s Artworks?
The artistic career of Joan Miro philandered with an extensive range of modernist influences inspired by, among others, aspects of Abstraction, Surrealism, Cubism, and Fauvism. Miro’s use and manipulation of these inspirations, besides his inexhaustible output, propelled his name and earned him a reputation as one of the 20th century most illustrious artists. Most people may think of him as a painter of surreal imagined landscapes and enigmatic dreamscapes. Nevertheless, a deeper analysis indicates that Joan Miro was a proud Catalan and a politically engaged individual who was also a committed critic of the Spanish government, which at that time largely advocated for nationalist principles.[1] Unknown to many, his political engagement and the conflicts that were taking place in Spain at that time influenced his style to a large extent.
For Miro, politics was an unavoidable subject and some scholars have noted that for him, it was an accident of birth. Miro was a son of a jeweler and a blacksmith who lived in Barcelona in the harbor area. The Catalan Independence Movement gained its momentum at the time Miro became of age. As such, he shared a deep-rooted sense of the potential to acquire freedom. To start with, Miro associated this freedom with the aspect of internationalism and as such, he wished to scape to Paris, which at the time was considered the international center for expressionism and it was the destination that most artists wished to operate from.[2] He was able to escape to Paris and although he spent quite a lengthy time there, he was still able to maintain his Catalan identity. From this identity, Miro developed a friendly visual language which he leveraged all his career life.
Among the most popular paintings attributed to Miro is “The Farm,” which dates back 1921-1922. ‘The Farm’ is considered among the earliest pieces of art attributed to him. The Farm is a duteous illustration of rural life in the painter’s home area. The painting features Miro engaging with the landscape that surrounds him. It was one of his many strategies of understanding his surrounding better, believing that by doing so, he would have a better understanding of the true meaning behind being Catalan. The Farm, together with other masterpieces by Miro such as the 1925 painting dubbed “The Head of a Catalan Peasant,” which depicted an individual in a barretina, or a red Catalan cap, displays him fully involved in a developing realization of Catalonian independence.[3]
In the run-up to the Spanish civil war, the conditions in the country particularly with regard to the political atmosphere became tenser and there was a sense of pugnaciousness in the painter’s engagement with politics. Even though Miro’s work might not have apparent political imagery, they were many times developed with political events in mind, as indicated by Miro’s letters and notebooks. In 1937, Miro painted another masterpiece dubbed “Still Life with Old Shoe.”[4] The painting depicts a fork suspended forebodingly above the flesh of an apple, a few moments before plunging into it with brute force. Scholars have referred to it as a “nightmarish coloring” of a masterpiece characteristic of Miro’s approach to art, in this case depicting a redirected display of the civil war in Spain.
In 1937, Miro created a campaigning image that was overtly political. The image titled “Aidez l’Espagne” featured a Catalan wearing a barretin hat clenching his fist in what appears to be a characteristic communist salute. He additionally showcased an enormous mural in Paris at the World’s Fair held at the Spanish Republican’s government’s pavilion. It was at the same venue that Guernica painted by Pablo Picasso was unveiled. Aidez l’Espagne was meant to tour intercontinentally with Picasso’s painting but unfortunately it got lost in an unexplained way and memories of it exist in black and white photographs taken before its disappearance.[5]
Miro returned to Spain in 1940 after living in France for quite some time where he was working with the surrealists. Scholars note that during this time, Miro was living in some form of internal exile all this time while his reputation buffed abroad. In mid-20th century, Miro wielded a lot of impact on the abstract painters living in America; he subsequently came back and complimented his earlier works by producing “Fireworks,” a Pollock-like series that he procured in 1974. The Pollock-like series involved splashing paint on the canvas to create impressions, a style not practiced by many artists during his time. An year before, Miro had produced a Burnt Canvas series, which he also reportedly splashed canvasses with buckets of paint, poured gasoline and set them ablaze. It was one among his many unique styles of art that set him apart from the rest.
Miro also continued to partake in politics. For example, in 1974, he produced a series of works called “Hope of Condemned Man.” These works were in part a censure or condemnation of the government’s decision to execute Salvador Puig Antich, a 25-year old anarchist. The “Hope of Condemned Man”[6] later became a celebrated piece all over the world, being branded célèbre and was used by the opposition to counter the Spanish nationalist government.
Bibliography
Adamowicz, Elza. “Joan Miró: the assassination of painting?.” Journal of Iberian and Latin American Studies 18, no. 1 (2012): 1-15.
Arena, Paolo, Maide Bucolo, Stefano Fazzino, Luigi Fortuna, and Mattia Frasca. “The CNN paradigm: Shapes and complexity.” International Journal of Bifurcation and Chaos 15, no. 07 (2005): 2063-2090.
Candela, Iria. Tate Introductions: Miró. Tate Enterprises Ltd, 2014.
Guss, Nathan. “Parkour and the multitude: Politics of a dangerous art.” French cultural studies 22, no. 1 (2011): 73-85.
Palermo, Charles. “Tactile Translucence: Miró, Leiris, Einstein.” October (2001): 31-50.
Short, Robert, Raymond Spiteri, and Donald LaCoss. Surrealism, politics and culture. Aldershot; Burlington, VT; Ashgate, 2003.
[1] Robert, Short, Raymond Spiteri, and Donald LaCoss. Surrealism, politics and culture. Aldershot; Burlington, VT; Ashgate, 2003.
[2] Elza, Adamowicz, “Joan Miró: the assassination of painting?.” Journal of Iberian and Latin American Studies 18, no. 1 (2012): 1-15.
[3] Charles, Palermo, “Tactile Translucence: Miró, Leiris, Einstein.” October (2001): 31-50.
[4] Paolo, Arena, et al. “The CNN paradigm: Shapes and complexity.” International Journal of Bifurcation and Chaos 15, no. 07 (2005): 2063-2090.
[5] Nathan, Guss. “Parkour and the multitude: Politics of a dangerous art.” French cultural studies 22, no. 1 (2011): 73-85.
[6] Iria, Candela, Tate Introductions: Miró. Tate Enterprises Ltd, 2014.
