Rosa Ardid Borràs
Professor of Catalan language and literature. Member of the juries and coordinator of the Cadaques Literary Awards.
Printmaking is part of the catalogue of almost all painters at one stage or another of their creation, and in some of them it plays an important role. Among Catalan painters we have examples in Joan-Josep Tharrats, Miró, Dalí, Tàpies, Ponç, Plensa or Barceló… and we could go on.
The printmaking world is rich and plural. The techniques are varied and very complex. We can’t limit ourselves to a single idea of its process as we could with an oil painting, watercolor or acrylic.
The Mini Print International of Cadaques unites all the types of printmaking through more than 600 works submitted to the competition from 44 countries. Artists enter the international competition stimulated by the prestige of the contest. This involves inclusion in a catalog that will travel through various countries as well as the possibility of an individual exhibition of prints in the event of being one of the six winners.
It is really remarkable that we can contemplate in one space the oldest techniques together with the newest ones, from woodcut to carborundum or digital art, and on the other hand, coexistence in the plurality of origins: the prints of a Catalan or Castillian artist next to those of a Canadian, Italian, German, Argentine, Australian, Bosnian, Czech, Korean and many more.
The beauty of the art captivates visitors who not only enjoy looking at the prints but can also acquire those that have most seduced them, because they are affordable. The mini size of the prints facilitates this and allows one to form a good collection year after year, and even select one as a gift.
The Taller Galeria Fort that houses the exhibition is in the old part of the village, in a street of galleries, but not where there is the greatest influx of people. Even so it is very visited, not only by those who frequent galleries but by all types of public: locals, tourists, the regulars – some of us never miss visiting the Mini Print every year. For those who visit the famous Mini Print for the first time, the cofounder Mercedes Barberà will explain to them in Catalan, Spanish, French or English, whichever is necessary, the organization of this mosaic of prints as well as the techniques if they wish.
The Mini Print International of Cadaques is the artistic force capable of going further every year. It has now reached its 44th edition since it was founded in 1981 by the goldsmith and printmaker Pascual Fort and his wife Mercedes Barberà. Pascual Fort was an artist with a passion for art and a broad view. I fondly remember how he invited me to a round table to discuss the level of the Catalan language in the world of printmaking, about how to normalize in Catalan the names of tools and techniques. A round table that, as a philology degree holder, I shared with Pascual and the painter Joan Josep Tharrats. Following Pascual’s death, the professionalism, perseverance and fortitude of his wife, with the support of their children Pep and Mercè, has made the Mini Print more alive and widely recognized than ever.
Cadaqués has a relevant position in the artistic world that crosses borders. The attraction of its light, its unique personality, has caused many artists to spend long periods or made it their residence there. Examples are Eliseu Meifren, Marcel Duchamp, Salvador Dalí or Gustavo Carbo Berthold and Nobuko Kihira. Some of them have participated in the Mini Print more than once.
The world of art and the world of letters go hand in hand in the poem by the Cadaques poet Quina Jaume, a great friend of Pascual and Mercedes and admirer of the Mini Print, in which she subtly values creation.
GOLDSMITH
You are a goldsmith who at daybreak waits
for the shapeless, red mass on the horizon.
Full of dawn, clothed in light,
your hands will shape the image…
You will despise no element that nature gives you
to recreate again all the forms that dreams evoke.
If you are patient you will contemplate the day,
the new creation.
Cadaques has telluric power and natural beauty. The Mini Print has human strength and artistic beauty.
Mercedes Barberà Rusiñol
Director of the Mini Print International of Cadaqués
The freedom of expression of ideas and techniques with which the participating artists create their works is one of the factors that makes the exhibition enormously attractive and interesting. To attentively observe each of the exhibited works fills us with new knowledge and sensations.
In addition, the works on display are so varied that they allow us to know the art world’s panorama in its various trends and styles. Despite their differences, together they form a harmonious whole that causes concord and well-being.
In this context, it should be noted that the Taller Galeria Fort in Cadaques received visitors from all five continents. A factor that contributes to this success is the presence of the works of the winners, one more incentive that awakens interest in knowing and visiting the exhibition.
In this edition we were honored by the presence of Florence Jalice of France, Lenka Falusiová of the Czech Republic, Ayako Isaka of Japan and Cristina Moriano of Catalonia who acted as jury for the 44th Mini Print International of Cadaques. Their presence has left us with a pleasant memory of sympathy and friendship.
However, we also feel the absence of Manon Denis of Canada and Magdalena Hlawacz of Poland. Their works accompanied us by their beauty and artistic value which in some way mitigated the lack of their physical presence.
This winter the Japanese artist Koichi Sugihara, winner of the 5th International Mini Print of Cadaques in 1985, left us. He was a faithful participant. He stayed to live in Barcelona for the rest of his life, and his works were always admired and awarded. We will deeply miss his company.
In addition, during the summer, we suffered the painful loss of the Argentinian artist, painter and printmaker Patricia Sicardi who had decided that her place in the world was Cadaques. She was an active participant in the Mini Print and a great cultural activist. Her absence is a very painful loss both for those who knew her and for the town of Cadaques.
In parallel to the exhibition in Cadaques, the International Mini Print was held at Wingfield Barns, England. This event is always awaited and admired by visitors and professional artists, thanks to the collaboration and promotion carried out for so many years by our great friend Ian Chance.
In addition, the Mini Print also travels to Bages, near Narbonne, France, where the L’Etangd’Art gallery welcomes it during the Christmas holidays. There, it is visited by the French public and participating artists from Europe with great success in the media.
We have the loyalty of the local press such as Setmanari de l’Empordà, El Punt Avui, Hora Nova and the magazines Bonart and Revistart whose invaluable collaboration is essential. Their support has been key to the dissemination and success of this event and for that we are deeply grateful.
Finally, we would like to express our gratitude to the participating artists, whose creativity and mastery are reflected in each of their works, endowed with great beauty and technical perfection. Without their talent and dedication, the continuity of the Mini Print International of Cadaques would not be possible.
We look forward to future participants with great interest and enthusiasm.