The Joan Miró Foundation celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2025
During 2025-2026, the Fundació Joan Miró (FJM) in Barcelona will celebrate its 50th anniversary. In this context, an exhibition will be organized that will review the history of the institution , reaffirming the role of the Foundation as a reference in contemporary art . With this celebration on the horizon, the institution launched an innovative industrial doctorate project in 2023, in collaboration with the Pompeu Fabra University (UPF), which aims to explore the institution's exhibition history and its cultural impact.
It is worth emphasizing that one of the strategic axes of this collaboration is to promote the completion of doctoral theses, facilitating the transfer of knowledge, research and the participation of doctoral students in the exhibition plan . In short, an alliance that allows the resources and knowledge of both the academic side and those of the Foundation to be combined, thus enhancing the quality and scope of the research.
Beyond commemorating the legacy of the Catalan artist Joan Miró, the FJM also wants to open new paths of understanding in contemporary art . Specifically, the project, which is a pioneer in its field, aims to study the temporary exhibitions of the FJM from a historical and audiovisual perspective . The study, led by industrial doctoral student Ramon Balcells, seeks to understand how these exhibitions have impacted both locally and internationally, offering a complete vision of the trajectory and influence of the Foundation over the years . All this, with the aim of highlighting the legacy of the institution and its lasting influence over time, establishing the foundations for new research and projects in the field of contemporary art.
The Foundation was created with the aim of preserving, studying and disseminating the work of Joan Miró, as well as promoting contemporary art. With a clear international vocation and public service, the Foundation seeks to consolidate itself as a global reference in the field of contemporary art . In addition, it promotes research and training in this field, offering a space for reflection and dialogue between artists, researchers and the public.
Originally conceived as the Centre for Contemporary Art Studies (CEAC), it opened to the public on June 10, 1975. Founded by Joan Miró himself, the institution has always acted as a great window from Barcelona to the world , exhibiting works of the new avant-garde and contemporary art, many of them never before seen in our country. This collaborative and welcoming attitude has marked the trajectory of the FJM, turning it into a dynamic space where the art of Joan Miró coexists with the most emerging artistic creation .
Ramon Balcells, PhD student and audiovisual professional
Ramon Balcells Vela is a professional who combines audiovisual production with research and university teaching. Since 2019, he has been an associate professor in the Department of Communication at Pompeu Fabra University (UPF).
After being accepted into the Industrial Doctorate program in June 2023, Balcells began working at the Fundació Joan Miró: “ Honestly, it is being one of the most transformative and exciting experiences I have had so far ,” the doctoral student tells us. The Industrial Doctorates have allowed Balcells to integrate his passions for research and audiovisual creation , developing a project that merges these disciplines to explore and reinterpret the exhibition history of an iconic museum like FJM.
The research project: “Stories of a museum”
The industrial doctorate, linked to the 50th anniversary of the Foundation, has great academic and artistic potential. In addition, it is strategically key for both institutions, according to the project members, who highlight its innovation (it is one of the few Industrial Doctorates in cultural production and the first of the CINEMA research group of the UPF Department of Communication).
Balcells' research, in general terms, focuses on researching the exhibition history of the Fundació Joan Miró, analyzing its exhibitions from a transversal and creative perspective. The aim, however, is to understand the exhibitions as symptoms of different political, social and cultural contexts, following the line of Exhibition Studies: "an academic discipline that is responsible for studying the history of art and society through exhibitions", Balcells himself explains.
The research will help Balcells to conceive an audiovisual device that will tell the story of Miró's exhibitions from different angles, not only historiographical or artistic. The fact is that this initiative represents 50% of the thesis project and will be part of the Foundation's 50th anniversary exhibition. Balcells himself explains what this device will consist of: " it contains interventions by key witnesses, archive images and everyday filming, combining the historical aspect with forms close to contemplative and experimental cinema ".
In particular, the work will not only document the Foundation's trajectory, but will also explore the artistic, cultural and social phenomena that have defined its influence over the years.
The collaboration between the Joan Miró Foundation and the Pompeu Fabra University
The thesis directors, Manel Jiménez Morales and Ivan Pintor Iranzo, emphasize that this project breaks boundaries that were previously indivisible , since it is a research and artistic creation project that addresses the history of art from various fields. This reinforces the model of transfer between universities and cultural institutions, and consolidates the modalities of art as research and applied theses , which are emerging in the field of Audiovisual Communication in Catalonia. In addition, the project has great added value: “ it hybridizes historical documentation and research with the creation of an audiovisual device, being one of the first doctoral theses applied in Audiovisual Communication at the UPF” , point out the thesis directors.
One of the challenges of the project from the academic side is to build a fluid relationship between the Foundation, the UPF and the doctoral student, remaining open to changes in cultural, political and social contexts. As the two directors explain, contemporary art museums are living institutions and permeable to external dynamics , a fact that must be kept very much in mind in the development of the project: “ we are facing a unique project with very few precedents. We have the great opportunity to be a beacon for future doctoral projects, paving the way in a type of collaborative and applied research ”.
On behalf of the Foundation, Dolors Rodríguez Roig is responsible for tutoring the strategic research project. As coordinator and curator of exhibitions at the FJM, she highlights the pride that the institution takes in being the first contemporary art museum in Catalonia to carry out an industrial doctorate project . The project will allow for a solid understanding of exhibition history and its social and cultural impact: “ we want to emphasize that the project will position us as national benchmarks for a discipline, Exhibition Studies, with great future prospects in the academic field ,” says Rodríguez Roig.
The audiovisual project “Stories of a Museum” will have a direct impact on the activities of the FJM, becoming an iconic testimony of its history for future generations : “ that the Miró Foundation can count on innovative research that provides tangible results beyond exhibitions, as is the future audiovisual result that Ramon will develop, is a great incentive to continue promoting collaborations between the Miró and not only other academic institutions, but also with other centers that do not necessarily have to be linked to the academy ”.
Rodríguez Roig highlights that having different perspectives and transversal knowledge, such as those provided by Ramon Balcells, opens new doors to research and allows a new approach to contemporary art . In addition, tutoring this project is a great personal satisfaction, since it is an opportunity for mutual learning: “ accompanying someone like Ramon Balcells in his research and project development process allows me to change learned perspectives and define them anew ”.
In conclusion, the project will not only benefit the artistic and academic context but will also have a positive impact on society in general, providing a deeper understanding of the Foundation's exhibition history and its role as a catalyst for contemporary art. Thus, Balcells' research represents an innovative confluence of academic research and artistic creation, which aims to project the legacy of Joan Miró and his lasting influence on contemporary art.
