Joan Ponç. Diàbolo

Painter Joan Ponç is like no other. He manages to escape larger 20th-century artistic classifications. And then a series of words come to mind that, whether a little or a lot, help to get a bit closer to a definition of his type of work: magic realism, onirism, symbolism, fantasy, surrealims, mysticism, Africanism. Ponç opens the gates of hell and releases demons and beasts. He paints the abyss, darkness, with carnivalesque touches.

Years ago people talked about the need to present a retrospective of his work, and at last it's here. The exhibition, which takes its title from a text by Joan Brossa, illustrated by Ponç and published in the magazine 'Dau al Set', brings together more than 100 pieces. It's a long journey through the Ponç universe, which coincideds with the anthology dedicated to Brossa, the friend who convinced Ponç to explore automatism.