Throughout the spring of 2018, the Grand Master’s Palace in Valletta will open its doors to a remarkable collection of works by two major Spanish artists of the 20th century – Pablo Picasso and Joan Miró.

Etchings from Pablo Picasso’s vollard Suite will feature in the exhibition.

The exhibition, titled Picasso and Miró: The Flesh and The Spirit, will be part of the major international project Picasso-Méditerranée, an initiative of the Musée National Picasso-Paris, which is an international cultural event being held from spring 2017 to spring 2019.

Over 60 cultural institutions have come together to conjure up a programme around the Mediterranean work of Pablo Picasso. This journey into the creation of the artist and across the places that inspired him, aims at strengthening ties between all the shores.

The exhibition is being brought to Malta by Fundación Mapfre in pursuance of its ethos about the way culture enriches people’s lives. One of the principal aims of the foundation, in fact, is to bring art and history closer to the public through exhibitions, courses and publications.

Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti is collaborating with Fundación Map­fre and the Office of the President, which made the Grand Master’s Palace available for the exhibition, the first of its kind in Malta.

Picasso was one of the greatest and most influential artists of the 20th century. He has a worldwide reputation and his works fetch the highest prices at auction houses. The exhibition comprises a suite of a hundred etchings produced by Picasso in the 1930s for the legen­dary art dealer, Ambrose Vollard; and over 40 paintings by Miró, in a bid to explore the different possibilities modern art offered them.

Pablo Jiménez Burillo, director of Fundación Mapfre’s Culture De­partment and curator of the exhibition, said: “This project aims to display more than two of the most significant creators of the 20th century who shook up traditional art.

“The exhibition not only tries to delve into the soul of the artists through their powerful passions, feelings and inspirations, but also demonstrates the significance of their personal universes, full of symbols that depict their personali­ties. While Picasso unties the dark forces of the male obsessions and delights in female beauty, Miró in­structs us in pure colours and free gestures, which represent the generosity of nature and the key to attain happiness.”

The exhibition runs between April 7 and June 30, 2018.  For more information on the exhibition e-mail Ana Zammit Munro at AnaZ@middlesea.com.