Miquel Barceló
Illustration — Miquel Barceló in 2011 • Illustration — Miquel Barceló decorated the ceiling of the Human Rights and Alliance of Civilizations Room, used by the United Nations Human Rights Council, in the Palace of Nations (Geneva). Barceló Artigues (born 1957) is a Spanish painter and sculptor.
Also recorded as Miquel Barcelo · Miguel Barcelo · Miguel Barceló · Miquel Barceló Artigues
Miquel Barceló

Ramón Pérez Niz · Flickr: 20110227miquel2 · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Born
- 1957
- Nationality
- Spain
- Occupation
- painter · sculptor · ceramicist · printmaker · graphic artist · visual artist · illustrator
- Fields
- Expressionism
- Known for
- Gran Elefant dret
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Illustration — Miquel Barceló in 2011 • Illustration — Miquel Barceló decorated the ceiling of the Human Rights and Alliance of Civilizations Room, used by the United Nations Human Rights Council, in the Palace of Nations (Geneva). Barceló Artigues (born 1957) is a Spanish painter and sculptor.
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Miquel Barceló (born 1957) is a ceramicist, graphic artist and illustrator, among other activities, of Spanish nationality.
Among the works is Gran Elefant dret. The work spans Expressionism.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 27 September 2026
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Authority files
gnd · 5519349-3 · wikidata · Q561930 · wikipedia · Miquel Barceló
In this article
Career
Career
• Illustration — Sculpture in the cathedral La Seu, Palma, Mallorca • Illustration — "Gran elefant dret" ("Great elephant standing") 2009, Barcelona Barceló was born at Felanitx, Mallorca. After having studied at the Arts and Crafts School of Palma for two years, he enrolled at the Fine Arts School of Barcelona in 1974. However, he only studied at this school for a few months. A year later he returned to Mallorca to participate in the happenings and actions of protest of the group "Taller Llunàtic", a conceptual avantgarde group. He also took part in the creation of their artist periodical Neon de Suro (21 issues from 1957 to 1982). A year after his return to Mallorca, he had his first one-man show at the Palma Museum. Initially, the Avant-garde, Art Brut and American abstract Expressionism (e.g. Pollock had a big impact on him) influenced Barceló's work. On the other hand, he was always particularly interested in the Baroque paintings of Diego Velázquez, Tintoretto and Rembrandt. Jean Dubuffet inspired Barceló in adopting an experimental attitude. Throughout the 1980s, he travelled extensively across Europe, the United States and West Africa – always returning to Paris which became a second home and where he set up a second studio. The time Barceló spent in different countries, his nomadism or peripatetic habits essentially influenced and inspired his work, most strongly the impressions of West Africa. His participation at the "Documenta 7", Kassel, Germany, in 1982 gained him international recognition. In 1983 he moved to Naples for five months. Here he realized some works made with volcanic cinder, for an exhibition at the Lucio Amelio's atelier. In this occasion he also answered the international call of the Neapolitan gallerist, after the 1980s earthquake, in which he asked the major contemporary artist of that time to create a work for the Terrae Motus collection. His work L'ombra che trema, now exhibited at the Royal Palace of Caserta, as he declared: "It's a self portrait: I made myself in the painting act. the shadow seems to reflect the other part of myself and at the same time is the destruction of the order." In 1986 he received Spain's National Award for Plastic Arts. In 2004 Barceló's watercolours, illustrating Dante's Divine Comedy, were shown at the Louvre Museum in Paris. For Palma Cathedral's Chapel of Sant Pere, Barceló covered the entire chapel with terracotta, decorating it with images related to the sixth chapter of the Gospel of St. John, the miracle of the multiplication of bread and fish, a theme chosen because the chapel is dedicated to the Last Supper. In 1990 he designed the costumes and stage sets for Manuel de Falla's opera El retablo de maese Pedro at the Opéra-Comique in Paris, and in 2006 at the Festival d'Avignon he was part of a performance with choreographer Joseph Nadj. On 18 November 2008 the Spanish government officially presented Miquel Barceló's latest immense work of art in the United Nations Palace of Nations in Geneva. The work of art is a massive sculptural installation located on the domed ceiling of the building's newly created Chamber XX of Human rights and Alliance of Civilizations. The work consists of 1500 m 2 of multi-coloured stalactite forms for which the artist used 100 tons of paint, that appear to be dripping from the ceiling. In 2010, Barceló was invited to teach at a workshop by the École Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture de Versailles. Barceló's work (paintings, drawings, sculptures and ceramics) is nowadays represented by Tobias Mueller Modern Art in Zürich, Galerie Bruno Bischofberger in Zürich and Acquavella Galleries in New York City. In 2017, Miquel Barceló has been elected a vice-president of CISAC at the 2017 General Assembly in Lisbon. In 2017 he was invested Doctor Honoris Causa by the University of Salamanca, as part of the commemoration of the VIII centenary of this University.
Exhibitions
Exhibitions
• 1999: Ceramics exhibition, Museu Fundación Juan March, Palma; traveled in 2000 to Museu de Ceràmica, Barcelona • 2011: Les Rencontres d'Arles Festival, France.

Miquel Barceló (2025)
Jindřich Nosek (NoJin)
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
Explore 1957–2024
The full dated record · 3 entries
1957
Miquel Barceló born at Felanitx.
2009
Gran Elefant dret is dated 2009.
2024
Miquel Barceló: Oceanographer (2024) is digitised and catalogued by Internet Archive.
Recognition and collections
Where the work is held
Recognition and collections
Miquel Barceló received Princess of Asturias Award for the Arts, Gold Medal of the Balearic Islands Community, honorary doctorate of Pompeu Fabra University, honorary doctorate of the University of Salamanca, honorary doctorate of the University of the Balearic Islands and Saint George's Cross.
Documents and archives
Primary material
Documents and archives
authority file
- Gemeinsame Normdatei 5519349-3, Tentoonstelling Stillevens van Miquel Barceló (1997 : Ostende).
Unverified · Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q561930: Miquel Barceló
Unverified · Wikidata
reference work
- “Miquel Barceló”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Famous Spanish Artist - Miquel Barceló. donQuijote.
- 2.Miquel Barceló: A Visionary of Contemporary Art. Artmajeur.
- 3.Velani, Coen, Tecce. Terrae Motus, la collezione Amelio alla Reggia di Caserta. Skira. 149–150. 2001. 978-88-8491-066-0.
- 4.Terrae Motus L'ombra che trema.
- 5.Fondazione Amelio. Terrae Motus. Electa Napoli. 41. 1984. 978-88-435-1066-5.
- 6.Calvo Serraller, Francisco. Barceló y Miquel Navarro reciben los premios nacionales de Artes Plásticas. El País. 19 December 1986.
- 7.2004 Miquel Barcelo : La Divine Comédie (Accrochage).
- 8.United Nations Ceiling. Atlas Obscura.
- 9.Workshop SP12 - Miquel Barceló in Versailles, École Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture de Versailles.
- 10.Celebrated visual artist Miquel Barceló elected CISAC Vice President at 2017 General Assembly. 9 June 2017.
- 11.Miquel Barceló, doctor honoris causa por la Universidad de Salamanca. Ultima Hora.
- 12.Miquel Barceló. Ceramics (1995-1998) Fundación Juan March. www.march.es.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
authority file
Gemeinsame Normdatei 5519349-3, Tentoonstelling Stillevens van Miquel Barceló (1997 : Ostende).Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Partially resolvedauthority record
Partially resolvedreference work
Partially resolved
Further particulars
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Further particulars
Open the remaining particulars
Miquel Barceló is recorded with the occupation graphic artist. Recorded as painter, sculptor, ceramicist and printmaker. Works and catalogued output.
Gran Elefant dret
2009
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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