Arthouse: Miró Mallorca

I am still marveling at the artwork and the fabulous interior design when I suddenly catch a tune. Someone is playing the piano right here in the Moneo Building. I follow the music through the maze-like complex of open spaces and hallways. First “Imagine” then some airy tune by Debussy or Satie. Guided by that incredible sound I discover a grand piano and a group of young visitors taking turns playing. Joan Miró would have loved the atmosphere, music was a major inspiration for his work.

That’s just how I experienced my first visit at the Fundació Pilar i Joan Miró in Cala Major. I came to see a collection of Miró’s most popular paintings. And learned about the rich creative work of a great artist, about his private estate and workshop high above the bay of Palma. Which looked as if he had walked out just a couple of minutes ago, leaving his work coat on the backrest of a Thonet rocking chair.

Miró’s studio, the Taller Sert, is a piece of art itself. Unique in form and materials its silhouette actually reminds you of a drawing. The light-flooded hall is full of paintings, finished and unfinished, leaning against each other. As exciting as Miró’s own works are the many small objects he collected in a cabinet and the sketches and postcards he put up on the walls. They tell about his passion, humor and creativity. And sure inspired him when he was working on some large-scale drawings and graffiti in his second studio, Son Boter. The typical rural Mallorcan house further up on the premises that he also used as a place of refuge.

Miró was a passionate gardener his whole life, cultivating flowers and vegetables around his house. Meandering along the garden paths today you meet some of his fancy sculptures. The friendly characters and animals bear witness of the artist’s imagination. Signs along the way tell sweet little stories about the plants that he may have been growing there.