Flash Art Covers: the historic covers of Flash Art International told by Giancarlo Politi.
Summer 1981. Helena and I, with our friend James Collins, were guests of Antonio Tapies in his beautiful house in Barcelona, pampered by his beautiful wife Teresa, muse and queen of the house as well as the Master’s trustworthy advisor.
Then Antonio told us, why don’t we go and visit Mirò, he would be very pleased. He is a great friend of mine.
Of course, we were extremely happy, since we were also offered the flight to Palma de Mallorca by Antonio Tapies, by now a brotherly friend. So we visited the great Mirò, the indomitable surrealist (André Breton called him “The most surrealist of us all”). In a large villa, strangely modified by himself and his friends with annexed a huge studio and a graphics and ceramics workshop, we were welcomed by a sprightly and polemical old man. The whole time he spoke about surrealism and his contempt for conventional painting. Funny but a bit obsessive.
What about your friend Antonio Tàpies then? He’s a surrealist, he answered me. Isn’t that right Antonio? Anonio Tàpies smiling said: of course Master, I am your faithful pupil. After an excellent lunch served by his wife Pilar, still talking about surrealism, we left for Barcelona glad to have met such a in important figure of the Surrealism movement. Helena and I were happy to dedicate a cover to him with a beautiful work owned by the then very important Maeght Gallery in Paris.
