Miquel Barceló doesn't make many hierarchies between artistic disciplines or historical periods. He considers ceramics to be "the mother of painting," and starting this Tuesday, 58 of his ceramics will be in dialogue with 36 by Picasso and 33 archaeological pieces from the Museum of Almería in the exhibition Reflections. Picasso x BarcelóThe highlight of the exhibition in Almería is an ingenious "nativity scene-theater," as Barceló himself describes it, depicting a Nativity. He assembled it himself on Monday morning, "deconstructing" the work done by the museum team, as its director, Tania Fábrega, wryly puts it. In fact, for the past 30 years, Barceló has created a nativity scene every year with his children, using figurines he has made himself. "I brought pieces from my workshop that were fragments, unfinished works, and figurines, and we combined them with the others without identifying who made them. It's very beautiful, because often there's a Picasso bull, a small bull of mine, and a Phoenician one, and they're made with the same or similar gestures, with very similar clay, and fired just barely. One is from Pompeii two thousand years ago, another was made in Palma, and one was made by your mother," the artist explains.

Miquel Barceló's wishes have been fulfilled: the Board of Trustees of the Sagrada Família has asked him to submit an artistic proposal for the sculptures on the Gloria façade. As the basilica itself has announced, they have also asked the Basque sculptor Cristina Iglesias and the Mexican Javier Marín. The artists must submit their proposals by the end of the year. These proposals will allow the Board of Trustees to "select the artist or artists who will ultimately carry out their execution." Barceló and Marín are eminently figurative artists, while Iglesias is known for her monumental sculptures inspired by the plant world. Iglesias also has the most experience in the field of public art.