Oiseau by Joan Miro, 1981

Commissioned by Henry T. Segerstrom, the cast bronze sculpture Oiseau suggests a hybrid- part avian and part human. This and other fantastical creatures by Miro were inspired, according to the artist, by the unconscious mind through dreams. Miro believed that forms expressed by an individual should disclose the activity of the mind that wishes to escape from its present reality, as it seeks out new realities. From 1966 on, Miro produced sculptures based principally on sall maquettes. Oiseau was originally executed from a small ceramic study. As an example of Miro's lifelong ability to draw inspiration from intuition and dreams, this bronze bird appears to have descended from a prehistoric age, or could personify an extinct species. Miro's work has been variously interpreted as Surrealist (an art movement fascinated with the subconscious mind), having a child-like spirit, or embodying a sense of Catalan pride.