Joan Miró was a world-renowned Spanish Catalan painter, sculptor, ceramicist, and printmaker, who drew on Catalan siurells folk art, which led to his signature style of art-making.

About this artwork:

Painting was created based on Joan Miro’s “Woman, Bird and Star” a.k.a. Homage to Picasso.

Joan Miró created this artwork between 1966 and 1973, finishing it on the day of his friend Pablo Picasso's death. Miró decided to dedicate it to him (hence the “Homage to Picasso” reference).

As the title of the painting suggests, the composition encompasses three abstracted figures: the main symbol of the woman (a human deeply rooted to the earth), surrounded by the star and the bird (suggesting poetic and spiritual attraction).

The figures are outlined in black and clearly stand out against the immense pale whitish background. Two of the figures are geometrically unevenly divided into random shapes, which are filled with flat colors (red, blue, yellow, green, and orange) reminiscent of the traditional whistlers from Mallorca.

My reproduction of this painting was recreated from its original, which I have seen in person at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid, and by examining the painting via the sophisticated technology of gigapixel (ultra HD) imaging. This technology enables viewers to see every detail of the painting clearly and allows for a high-definition zoom analysis. This was invaluable in mixing the hues, applying the brushstrokes, selecting the sequences of paint applications, and especially in exploring the details of the background.

Recreating Miró’s paintings helps me to fully understand and appreciate what he meant in his famous quote: “There, in my pictures, tiny forms in huge empty spaces.”

I truly loved working on this painting and even enjoyed the struggle of making the perfect color matches. I believe that my final creation conveys the same emotions and beauty as the original.