Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/169626
Joan Miró arrived in Paris in 1920. His first home was on the Rue Blomet, a place he described as 'first and foremost a place of friendship, fanatical discovery and the exchange of ideas for a wonderful group of friends'. Miró's life and work was fed and nurtured through his intimate friendships: they were a source of fulfilment in his life and inspiration for his work. This exhibition and essay will show Miró's work in relation to some of his 'intimistes'; those that opened the doors of discovery for him and those for whom he opened doors in the spirit of friendship. Miró was to meet many of his 'intimistes' in the 1920s, most notably André Masson, whom he met in 1921, in what was to be a profound and lifelong friendship. As next door neighbours on the Rue Blomet, Masson introduced Miró to the contemporary literary scene, which included Michel Lieris, Antonin Artaud, Paul Eluard and Robert Desnos. These men were highly influential on Miró, their friendship adding poetry to the heart of his work. Following their introduction to André Breton in 1924, Miró and Masson became part of the Surrealist group, exhibiting at the First Surrealist Exhibition at the Galerie Pierre in 1925. His affiliation with the Surrealists also led to his friendship with Max Ernst, with whom Miró became neighbours on the Rue Tourlaque in 1926. Miró also met and befriended other artists associated with the Surrealists such as Henri Goetz, Fernand Léger and British artist Edward Burra. From the late 1920s fractures started to emerge within the Surrealist group. Miró and Masson's friendship with André Breton began to disintegrate in 1929 and the pair began to distance themselves personally and creatively from the group. In 1931 Miró famously pronounced his desire to 'assassinate painting', signalling his definite break with the Surrealists, although not all friendships were severed. Miró maintained links with, amongst others, Goetz, Léger and George Hugnet, who was to defend Miró's earlier statement, saying, 'Yes, Miró wanted to assassinate painting, he murdered it with visual means, by an aesthetic which was one of the most expressive of our time. He murdered it, perhaps, because he did not want to subject himself to its requirements, its aesthetics, and a program which would have been too narrow to give life to his own aspirations'.