Joan Miró. Detail of Plate 2 and Plate 2 from the Black and Red Series. 1938. Etching, 6 5/8 x 10 1/8" (16.8 x 25.8 cm) © 1998 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris
 
 (3 of 4 pages)
Iconography

A close look at Miró's work of this period shows many instances in which he has incorporated exaggerated facial features that are monstrous in effect. In particular, he fashions a nose that doubles as an upper lip, creating a trapping mechanism for the gaping, tooth-filled mouth beneath it.

In the Black and Red Series of 1938, this monster at the lower left could be interpreted as the embodiment of evil in the person of Generalissimo Francisco Franco, leader of the Fascist forces during the Spanish Civil War. And since tension in Europe spread well beyond Spain in this period, Miró's iconography surely responded to a more general mood of impending danger.
 
   
   
 
>		  
     

©1998 The Museum of Modern Art, New York