Joan Miró

JOAN MIRÓ (Barcelona, 1893 – Palma de Mallorca, 1983).
“Album 21,” 1978.
Color lithograph on Arches paper.
Signed and numbered in pencil 41/75.
Plate 13 from the Album 21 series.
Printed by Mourlot, Paris.
Published by Maeght Éditeur, Paris.
Bibliography: Fernand Mourlot, Joan Miró. Lithographe, vol. VI (1976–1981), Éditions Maeght, Paris, 1992, no. 1138 (reproduced).
Measurements: 64 x 49 cm (paper); 100 x 85 cm (frame).

Created in 1978, this lithograph is part of the Album 21 collection, comprising twenty-one original prints created by Joan Miró to accompany the poems of Cuban writer Carlos Franqui. Published by Maeght Éditeur in Paris, the collection is a remarkable expression of the close relationship the artist maintained with poetry and literature throughout his career. The composition unfolds a universe of biomorphic forms and fantastical-looking symbols, arranged around a large black circular motif and accompanied by intensely dynamic graphic elements. The orange, red, violet, and blue tones, applied with grainy strokes, create a vibrant chromatic contrast. The gestural freedom and spontaneity of the drawing reflect Miró’s extraordinary ability to transform a repertoire of elementary signs into a language of great expressive power.

Joan Miró was one of the key figures of the 20th-century avant-garde. Associated with Surrealism since his time in Paris during the 1920s, he developed a personal language based on imaginative freedom, symbol, and color. In 1956, he settled in Mallorca, where he immersed himself in an intense creative output that spanned painting, sculpture, ceramics, and printmaking. In 1954, he received the Grand Prize for Printmaking at the Venice Biennale, and in 1958, the Guggenheim Award. His work is part of prestigious collections such as the MoMA in New York, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the Fundació Joan Miró in Barcelona.