The Jan Michalski Foundation, founded in 2004 by Vera Michalski-Hoffmann in memory of her husband Jan, stands like a concrete abbey dedicated to thought and literature – much less stained glass and choirs, but still a place worthy of a pilgrimage for lovers of words. Nestling at the foot of the Jura mountains, it offers an ideal haven of peace for those who prefer books to the hustle and bustle of everyday life.  At the heart of this modern sanctuary, the Maison de l’écriture, inaugurated in 2013, displays its literary treasures. Its multilingual library, with 80,000 volumes, is a veritable call to intellectual exploration.

The exhibition « Miquel Barceló. Autofictions » weaves profound links between visual art and literature, creating a dialogue between forms and ideas. Right from the entrance, eight large baroque terracotta vases, embodying philosophical figures, invite us to reflect on the relationship between writing and sculpture, between word and form. These sculptures, whose names include Kierkegaard, Walter Benjamin, Simone Weil, Seneca and Saint Augustine, remind us that literature is not simply the art of writing, but a way of thinking, feeling and giving shape to the human condition. The whimsical, hard-to-identify headdresses that cover these containers can be read as metaphors for the imaginary and philosophical dimensions of writers and the ideas they convey.

The walls are covered with canvases, etchings and lithographs, each paying homage to the page, the notebook, and the literary figures who seem to have been fellow travellers for the artist. Among these works, a portrait of Jean-Luc Nancy, drawn in bleach, chalk and charcoal, seems to capture a deep – almost mystical – relationship, while Barcelo’s 1985 self-portrait ‘En lisant’, an oil mixed with pencil and charcoal on paper, shows the artist absorbed in a larger-than-life book, bigger than his head, as if the whole world were melting into its pages.  In the centre of the room, a long display table houses around a hundred sketchbooks and writings, testifying to the artist’s travels and explorations since 1978. These drawings and collages, produced in a variety of media including Indian ink, charcoal, pencil and pen, are a veritable creative explosion. Recurring motifs such as boats, fish, exotic fruit, animals and fantastic creatures populate these pages, offering a glimpse into the artist’s overflowing inner world. The second area of the exhibition features four large sculptures in bronze and plaster, accompanied by three powerful canvases. The centrepiece, a recent painting that pays homage to Edgar Poe, in black and white, explores the interplay of light and darkness – a bit like a theatre stage with skulls, animal heads and octopuses merging with faces. And like a good macabre banquet, burnt-out chairs add a dramatic touch to the scene.  This rare exhibition is a real immersion in the artist’s complex and fascinating universe, revealing works long forgotten, like a treasure hidden in the recesses of his studios. The curator and director of the exhibition, Natalia Granero, has unearthed these rare gems, enabling the public to discover a previously unseen facet of Barceló’s unbridled creativity.

From 29-03-2025 to 28-09-2025

Jean Michalski Foundation

Montricher, Switzerland.

fondation-janmichalski.com