VÍCTOR MIRA (Zaragoza, 1949 - Munich, 2003)."Appetizing Appearance of Madrid", 1973.Oil on canvas.Work referenced in: Ana M.Canales, "You are my favourite painter". Ed Dayton, Madrid, 1973.Signed, dated and titled on the back.Measurements: 130 x 162 cm; 132,5 x 164 cm (frame).This piece is one of Victor Mira's most singular works, as it deals with themes of masculinity and femininity, reproduction and metamorphosis, which is represented by a butterfly that takes flight towards the upper part of the painting. The protagonist is a pregnant woman opening her arms to the viewer. A sculptor, painter, engraver and writer, his training was basically self-taught. At the age of eighteen he held his first individual exhibition at the N'Art gallery in Zaragoza, which was also the first open-air sculpture exhibition held in that city. Shortly afterwards he moved to Madrid, where he exhibited in 1973 at the Pol Verdié gallery. During his years in the capital he attended the Encuentros de Pamplona, where he met John Cage. Two years later, in 1974, Ana María Canales published her book "Víctor Mira, eres mi pintor preferido" (Victor Mira, you are my favourite painter). In 1975 she travelled to Heidelberg, where she lived for five months, and that same year she published "El libro de las dos hojas". In 1976 he began to work in Germany on his series "Spanische Haltung" and "Manos". After spending some time between Madrid and Germany, in 1977 he settled in Barcelona. There he began his cycle of paintings "Interiores catalanes con tomate", and in 1979 he published his first book of poems, "El bienestar de los demonios". That same year he had his first solo exhibition in Munich, at the Tanit gallery, and the following year he showed his work in the United States, at the George Staempfli gallery in New York. From then on his international career took off, with exhibitions in Germany, the United States, Holland, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Colombia, France, Belgium and Austria, while he continued to exhibit regularly in Spain. In 1983 he travelled to the United States for the first time, invited by the Meadows Museum in Dallas, and that same year he worked in the printmaking workshops of the Southern Methodist University in Dallas and spent five months in New York. Also in 1983, in Barcelona, he produced his first series of iron sculptures, "Cultura del arco" and "Mediodías". In 1997 he was invited to participate in the Art Biennale in New York by Amy Chaiklin, and six years later, shortly before his death, he was awarded the prize for the best living Spanish artist at the ARCO Fair. The most recent retrospective exhibition devoted to this artist was held in Düsseldorf, Germany, at the Beck & Eggeling gallery. Works by Mira are held in museums and private collections all over the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, the MACBA in Barcelona, the Fine Arts Museums of Vitoria and Zaragoza, the Beulas Foundation in Huesca, and the Museo Colecciones ICO in Madrid, among others.