Inside Joan Miró’s Just-Opened Farmhouse, Where the Artist’s Studio Is Perfectly Preserved

The exterior of Joan Miró's country house.

Courtesy of Mas Miró

You might have booked a Barcelona trip with Antoni Gaudí’s steeples in mind, or to see one of the most comprehensive collections of Picasso, but it’s Joan Miró who first welcomes you to the seaside city, no matter how you arrive.

The jet set are greeted with a mural that commands the eye at Barcelona Airport's Terminal 2B; arriving into the Port de Barcelona, cruise ship passengers spill out onto La Rambla, where they'll find Miró’s Pla de l’Os mosaic; and just by the train station, you’ll see the artist’s monolith-like sculpture, a whimsically abstracted woman and her bird that both stand over 72 feet tall. And as of this month, fans of the artist and Barcelona tourists have a new place to pay homage to the artist: Fundació Mas Miró, his former country home.

The main entrance of Mas Miró.

Miró, whose Mediterranean landscapes refracted into constellation-like forms as his career progressed, is an indelible part of the artistic history of Barcelona and the world at large. In a city engaged in a national identity tug-of-war between Spain and Catalonia, Miró is unanimously beloved. In last summer's terrorist attack on the city, the van that barged onto the pedestrian path of La Rambla, killing 14 people and injuring dozens, stopped just short of Miro’s Pla de l’O. The mosaic served as the receiving point for memorial candles and flowers bestowed by members of a city in shock.

Miró’s work also served as witness to another horrific act of terror: The World Trade Center Tapestry was the artist’s largest textile-piece, and was destroyed in 9/11. Though Miró had passed away years before the attack, the tapestry's co-creator, artist Josep Royo, opted to not recreate the work when so much else would be lost forever. Other versions of Miró’s tapestries can still be viewed; most notably, the work the artist created specifically for his foundation in Barcelona, the Tapestry of the Fundació. Hanging at over 24 by 16 feet, the outstanding three-dimensional work features Miró’s iconic stars and moons rendered in Jute, hemp, cotton, and wool. The work will soon receive the attention of conservators thanks to funding from the Majestic, a Barcelona hotel helmed by art patrons that also exhibits its own collection (a work by Antoni Tàpies hangs inconspicuously in an upper-floor hallway).

Courtesy of: Mas Miró

Fundació Joan Miró, constructed with guidance from the artist himself, was long the main Miró-destination of the city. But just over an hour's drive west along the Spanish coast is the town of Montroig, location of Miró’s childhood home, where the artist spent nearly every summer of his life.

Down an allée of Mulberry trees, visitors will reach Miró’s unassuming farmhouse and studio. Architecturally speaking, the grounds range from the 18th to the 20th centuries, but the cohesive exteriors suggest otherwise. Mas Miró epitomizes the owner's unpretentious country charm. Outside, balustraded rails decorate windows and a white stucco façade stands out against the blue skies of Southern Spain. To the left of the house, you’ll find evidence that this is indeed a farmhouse—cauliflower and potatoes grow in rows, and orange, almond, olive, and carob trees shade the gardens. (It was said Miró would carry carob pods around in his pockets for a sweet snack.) To the right, you’ll unfortunately find a newly constructed highway. Though it makes Mas Miró accessible, it subtracts from the 360-degree country landscapes that now only live on in the artist’s oil renderings.

Meals were served in a casual dining room.

Stepping into the main house, the scent of orange blossoms lingers through the sparsely decorated ground floor. Here, you'll see humble wicker furniture and straw hats adorning the walls in lieu of Miró’s own masterworks. Things get livelier, or “more bourgeois” as my tour guide tells me, as you climb the upper floors, where colorful tile patterns alternate at every doorway and floral plaster light fixtures bring in light when the sun sets. Here, you can find the same window the artist once perched on for his famous portrait by Joaquim Gomis.

Yarn embroidery adds a floral element to a cane chair in a guest bedroom.

But the main attraction is, of course, the studio. A later addition to the property, the studio was where Miró spent his summer mornings painting, reportedly in monkish silence, before taking an afternoon siesta. Miró’s family preserved the space, keeping it just as the artist left it during his last trip to Montroig in June of 1976—a calendar from that month even remains tacked on a wall. A paint-splattered smock lies on the back of a chair and a collection of stained brushes and bottles appear mid-use.

Inside the studio of Joan Miró.

Courtesy of: Mas Miró

It was at this farm that Miró decided to commit his life to the arts. Later, the property proved so inspirational it would serve as creative grounds for masterwork landscapes including La Masia (The Farm), Mont-roig, El Pont (Mont-roig, The Bridge), and La Casa de la Palmera (House With Palm Tree). Many of the natural scenes are still intact and visible on the drive back to downtown Barcelona, making both the countryside and the city something of a continuous Miró gallery.