Joan Miró was a very famous Spanish artist who created his works in many different art forms. Read on to find out about his life, his family, and his artwork.
Early Life
Joan Miró was born on April 20, 1893, in Montroig, near Barcelona, Spain. The oldest son of Michel Miró Adziras and Dolores Ferra, who were both artists. Both his parents were goldsmiths and his dad was a watchmaker. Even his grandfathers were craftsmen, which was a lucky thing because Miró really loved art. He began to draw when he was about 8 years old.

Even though his family loved the arts and Miró didn't do well in school, his parents wanted him to go into business. When he was about 17, Miró attended a business school and had a job as a clerk. He hated it. While he was in business school, Miró became very sick. When he got better, he decided he would devote his life to art. He enrolled in an art academy in Barcelona when he was 19.

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Early Career
An important event in the life of an artist is a solo art exhibition, which is an event when the public can view and buy the artist's work and nobody else's. Miró had his first solo exhibition when he was just 18 years old.

After that, he went to Paris, France, where many artists live. He wasn't successful at first. He said that he'd go to bed hungry and have strange dreams, which he'd use as inspiration for his artwork. While in Paris, he met artist Pablo Picasso and was friends with many writers.

Two years later, Miró had his first solo art show in Paris, France. It was a disaster; he didn't sell even one painting! Miró joined a group of artists called the Surrealists who were painting in a new way. Surrealism is a kind of art in which the pictures look more like dreams than real life. Miró was part of the first Surrealist art exhibition, held in Paris in 1925.

Miró Becomes Successful
For over 20 years, Miró tried out many different art forms. He began his first collages, which are collections of pictures or items put together. He also started making prints and made dream-like sculptures into which he put found objects and painted stones.