La Jalouse 1981

Joan Miró made this lithograph, La Jalouse, by layering marks and colors in an additive process. There is an openness to his method; the eye travels around the composition, led by swaths of black ink. The texture of the lithographic stone is visible, creating a ground from which floating, organic forms emerge. Miró seems to want us to see his process, not concealing the gestures of his hand. The large central form pulses with energy, an eye rendered as a vibrant red ring. This eye-like form is echoed throughout the piece in pastel orbs and scribbled circles. There is a lightness of touch in the color palette of Miró’s work that always reminds me of Matisse, but in his surrealist language, he creates a whole other world.