I met Miquel Berrocal (who was born in the middle of the civil war, in 1933) on his individual exhibition thanks to Maria Fernanda, the widow of the painter Jose Caballere (who was the founder of the "La Baracca" university theatre together with F. G. Lorca) in Madrid, in the Centro Cultural Del Conde Duque on the 12^th February 1999.
After the exhibition we participated at an unforgettable gipsy song concert – cante jondo, cante flamenco.
After the concert we had a long discussion during which I presented to him my conceptions about the project of a graphic portfolio (from the 50 greatest painters of the world).
I requested him to participate in the project dedicated to the work of F.G. Lorca with his own graphics, which he accepted gladly and readily.
We parted having agreed that by summer he would have sent me the graphic exemplary necessary for the typographic preparation.
I felt very strange and excited when that night, in the apartment of Maria Fernanda I had to chance to read the original letters, notes and poems of F. G. Lorca and Pablo Neruda, which were exposed on the walls in frames, and from beneath them, from the shelves an immense number of Berrocal’s statuettes looked at me.
The wonderful touch of time passed over me as Miquel Berrocal had known Pablo Neruda personally, Neruda had known F.G. Lorca, and I had met M. Berrocal on that day, and exactly this wonderful blending in time got me to Lorca.
M. Berrocal is one of the best known and most famous Spanish sculptors living today, a fan of the Olympic sport games, his work – "Citius-altius-fortius" (1992) decorates the entrance of the Musee Olympique in Lausanne (Switzerland).
M. Berrocal has presented works in many well-known museums and galleries of many cities as a sculptor, painter and graphic artist, one of his most important exhibitions took place in the Arnold Katzen Gallery in New York in 1981, which was also visited by Huan Carlos Spanish king, and Andy Warhol created a portrait about him, immortalizing him during his stay in New York.
Starting from the 70s M. Berrocal replaces his residency into the sunlit Italy, to a beautiful vinery area: into the nice little settlement of Negrar near Verona. His residence is the "villa Rizzardi" where he is visited by many world-known artists: De Chirico, Salvador Dali, Placido Domingo, Cesar, Paloma Picasso, Carlos Scarpa, Arman, Tapies etc.
Under the green leaves of the wonderful garden there can be found the "Teatro verde", where in 1972 M. Berrocal and his wife Cristina (the princess Cristina de Branganza) performed Shakespeare’s Romea and Juliet in original costumes to their own amusement and their friends’ delight.
Based on such a life rhythm and work it seemed logical, that Barrocal will be late with the things discussed, with Lorca’s graphics. But, thanks to my boring attitude and endeavour, I managed to get the requested material in time.
Finally the graphical file to Lorca’s portfolio was ready in the spring of 2001. But a problem arose: when I – together with my friend, Ivo Klaric (the cultural attaché of the Croatian Embassy of Madrid) – took the graphics for signature and numbering to the Villa Ruzzardi, Berrocal regaled us wonderfully as a hearty host. Finally there has arisen an unforgettable and endless colloquy about arts, history, bull-fighting and toreadors perfused with excellent red wine – and the wine kept flowing and flowing… The time for signing and numbering the graphics had come, but the wine had done its bit: Berrocal – with my assistance – numbered the graphics mistakenly.
Afterwards I continued my road in the world and I noticed much later, after I returned to Zagreb and I arranged the graphics in an atelier that the numbering was mistaken.
We had to create totally new graphics which gave us two the chance to meet again, to deepen our friendship and collaboration. While writing these lines I often look at the little brass statuette, Miquel’s work, which I was given by Lady Cristina as a sign of her understanding and of supporting the Lorca project.
I met Lady Cristina in Venice on the 6^th of September, with the occasion of the presentation of the "Open2002 Fondazione Mimmo Rotella" award at the reception organized in the Peggy Guggenheim Museum, where I had to chance to meet professor Pierre Restany again who helped in the realization of the Lorca project with his advice and connections very much.
That is when I met Mr. Paolo De Grandis, the president and organizer of the "Open 2002 imaginaire feminine" exhibition, as well as Mrs. Yoko Ono, who was also a participant at the exhibition.
After the reception I went to Negrar, to Miquel with the new graphics, which we first signed and numbered, after that we drank wine and wine and wine…