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maltatoday WEDNESDAY 11 APRIL 2018 14 Feature FUNDACIÓN MAPFRE, in col- laboration with the Office of The President and Fondazzjoni Patri- monju Malti has inaugurated the exhibition on Picasso and Miró, The Flesh and the Spirit, a show that, for the first time, brings to- gether these two great artists of the 20th century on an interna- tional level. The exhibition, which aims to enhance the prestige of Valletta as a European capital for 2018, forms part of the cultural event "Picasso-Mediterranean", led by the Musée national Picasso- Paris. It is an initiative for which around sixty European institu- tions from the world of culture, notably the Picasso Museum of Barcelona, the Reina Sofía Na- tional Art Centre Museum, the Van Gogh Foundation of Arles, The Museums of Marseille, The Paris Opera, The Capodimonte Museum of Naples, The Na- tional Gallery of Modern Art of Rome and the Civic Museums Foundation of Venice, have all joined together for the purpose of paying tribute to the famous artist from Malaga, explor- ing his creations and the places that inspired him, providing an original cultural experience and strengthening ties across the en- tire Mediterranean area. If Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) was the founder of Cubism, forerunner of the other avant- garde movements, Joan Miró (1893-1983) contributed as one of the leading figures in the de- velopment of surrealism. But above and beyond the major ar- tistic currents and movements, the two of them knew how to create their own individual uni- verse, something that individu- alised their place in the History of Art, positioning them at the epicentre of the avant-gardists as independent figures. It is this independence and singularity that led them to become both a benchmark for other artists and protagonists in the renewal of art: Picasso through line draw- ings and sketches and Miró with his use of colour and his inten- sity. These two aspects are the ones that stand out most in the works which were selected for this joint show. In the Vollard Suite prints, Picasso does not use colour. The contrasts between black and white allow him to consolidate his return to more a more classic style of drawing and a more re- flexive world. On the other hand, the collection of Miró paintings reveals the enthusiasm he felt for colour. The first part of the exhibition gathers together the 100 etchings that make up the Vollard Suite, produced by Pablo Picasso between 13 September 1930 and March 1937, commis- sioned by the art dealer and pub- lisher Ambroise Vollard. The complete series includes three Portraits of Vollard, five prints referred to as The Battle of Love, forty-six prints on The Sculptor's Studio, which are the ones that form the true nucleus of the series, four prints on Rem- brandt, fifteen on The Minotaur and The Blind Minotaur and twenty-seven miscellaneous compositions. The complicated story behind the work, its thematic variety and diversity of techniques, in which the most varied means of production were brought to- gether, (burin, etching, aquatint, gouache and dry point and even their use in combination) led to its dispersal, meaning that we are currently aware of only very few complete collections. Acquired by the Foundation in 2007, it constitutes one of the most im- portant historical-artistic tes- timonies of the first half of the 20th century. The show then moves onto a selection of forty-four paint- ings by Joan Miró, focusing on his production from the 1960s and 1970s, that reflect not only a more mature Miró in full possession of his ar- tistic powers but, above all, dem- onstrate his passion for colour as a means of expression and its use to give genuine support and sub- stance to painting. From the seventies onwards, Miró began to refine the motifs behind his work, stripping them right back, as can be seen in the works that simulate the flight of a bird or the numerous heads dis- played in the exhibition. Strange creatures, sometimes mischie- vous, others lyrical, are ascribed human attributes. Solitary heads leap out from the canvas and look about inquisitively, inducing a combination of fear mixed with the humour that runs through all his work. In the final part of the exhibi- tion there is a series of pieces that are better understood by recall- ing the famous phrase by which, according to the artist, he want- ed to "assassinate painting". This assassination has a double mean- ing. On the one hand, waste materials such as used palette boards, resins and paint blobs became protagonists. On the other, works by unknown art- ists came into play: he would buy paintings in local markets which he would then paint over, result- ing in a mixture of both artists. notably the Picasso Museum ings and sketches and Miró with his use of colour and his inten- sity. that stand out most in the works which were selected for this joint show. In the Vollard Suite prints, Picasso does not use colour. The contrasts between black and white allow him to consolidate his return to more a more classic style of drawing and a more re- flexive world. On the other hand, the collection of Miró paintings reveals the enthusiasm he felt for colour. Picasso And Miró, The Flesh and The Spirit in Valletta gathers together the 100 etchings that make up the more mature