Clavells (Carnations)

Engraved are the words: 'Joan Barbarà feccit et sculpsit'. A print of refreshing beauty. The structure is simple, the carnation red of the flowers swings freely in the bright interior. The lines of the stems originate from the engraving burin, which picks its way through the soft varnish. The velvety red and white areas reveal the grainy texture of the colophon powder: an aqua fortis etching with aquatint from 1982, printed in a relatively small edition.

Margaritas (Boc de Vidre) Daisies (Glass Vase)

Barbarà's etchings must actually be touched - they are like reliefs, marked by the deep lines of the acid. This color etching of daisies in a glass vase was done in 1988. It is an etching with aquatint, poupée and collage done in seven colors. The blossoms advance from the shadows of the background, magenta and mauve in front of soft sepia and green earth. The garden is recreated from memory.

A view of a Spanish interior patio such as those found in Catalonia becomes the theme in small format. Arcs (Arches) was printed in 1977. A sketch-like impression, it seems like a preliminary study to Barbarà's earliest chalcographic series 'Negre sobre negre' (Black on Black, 1995), in which architectural elements - arcades and pergolas - become the leitmotifs. (cf. Catalogue Edicions Polígrafa, Barcelona, Galeria Tristan Barbarà, 1995).

Still Life with White Vase (Urceola)

This blossoming still life displays Baroque movement, a decorative wealth of colors and a plastic quality, but above all, a masterful printing technique. And this sums up the qualities which make this etching, printed in 1988 in seven colors (etching, aquatint, poupée and collage) so attractive.

In this etching, with aquatint, poupée and collage in 9 colors, printed in 1989, an ornamental tendency comes to fruition, as if the floral pattern continues into a spring bouquet. The masterful diversity of the technical media is incomparable in its enticing fullness and flowering splendor.

Kokoschka T. D. S. P.

You may wonder how this print came into being. Quite simply, as Joan Barbarà explains: 'As so often happened, I had gone to visit another artist's studio, this time Oskar Kokoschka's in Villeneuve, Switzerland. It was in 1977. Kokoschka was sitting in front of a large canvas, and since I had a small drawing notebook with me, I drew his portrait while he contemplated the canvas.' Later, this lithograph was produced as an homage to the great artist.

Still Life with Blooming Mimosas

In this nine-color etching from 1991, with aquatint, poupée and collage, the surge towards an ambitious abstraction becomes tangible. A single yellow mimosa blossom fills the print. The ornament swings out from the background. The fine grain of the aquatint suggests optically tangible materiality, as if one could actually "see" the scent of the flower. This is an important print within Joan Barbarà's graphic work. ek