Contemporary sculpture from the Bassat collection converges with the works of Marès

Thirty contemporary sculptures from the Bassat collection (belonging to Carmen and Lluís Bassat) are to spend six months alongside pieces from the medieval period, the Renaissance, the Baroque period and the 19th century, from the Museu Frederic Marès. The aim is to establish a dialogue and allow people visiting the museum to engage in the flow of these paired works. Entitled Confluencias, the display is open to the public from 18 November 2022 to 21 May 2023.

The Bassat collection is one of the most outstanding contemporary art collections in Catalonia and Spain, while at the Marès visitors can admire creations by renowned artists such as Joan Miró, Henry Moore, Pablo Gargallo, Julio González, Eduardo Chillida, Josep Maria Subirachs, Manolo Valdés, Joan Brossa and Aurèlia Muñoz. These pieces “meet” with permanent pieces at the Marès in a project enabling us to discover part of the collection held by husband and wife Carmen and Lluís Bassat, but also to make a new reading of the works at the museum that is hosting them and to revisit almost a thousand years of sculptural history. The pairing of the pieces followed different criteria, yet the Marès explains that this does not always mean that they “agree with each other. At times there’s a simple coexistence, at others, a contrast; also correspondence, intrusions…” As the museum also points out, “each work of art was created in a certain cultural, religious, social and economic context, and always with a specific purpose”. Convergences to be found include the relic bust by an unknown author of a 16th century saint with Dama de las avispas, from 2009, by Gerard Mas; San Juan Evangelista, from the year 1600 by Juan de Montejo, with Óvalos blancos (1981), by Aurèlia Muñoz; or a carving of the Immaculate Conception from the early 18th century by Antoine Dupar with Constellation silencieuse, by Joan Miró from 1970.

Various related activities will be organised over the months the exhibition is on, such as guided tours, and family workshops.  More information here.