This exhibition aims to provide an overview of an important chapter in the history of Catalan art. Sealing Barcelona’s rise was the 1888 World’s Fair, which celebrated the economic and urban development of the Catalan capital and helped to spread ideas of renewal and modernization after the model of Art Nouveau Paris and other European cities.
Strong social conflicts, however, came along with this cultural and economic growth, culminating in 1909 in the so-called “tragic week. "La rosa de foc. Picasso and Gaudí's Barcelona" tells the story of these fertile yet turbulent years, leaving a deep mark on the history of twentieth century art. The inventions of Lluís Domènech and especially Gaudí, the visionary innovator of architecture and interior design, alternate with masterpieces by some of the most important figures in Catalan painting and sculpture: Ramon Casas, Santiago Rusiñol, Hermenegildo Anglada Camarasa, Isidre Nonell, Juli González, and early Picasso.
The exhibition is curated by Tomàs Llorens and Boye Llorens, organized by Fondazione Ferrara Arte.