Mid-Century original lithograph entitled " Chamonix " hand signed by Joan Gardy Artigas and numbered 12/75 on arches vellum rag paper from the 1966-70 edition. Presented in period 1960's chrome frame.

Joan, at the time of the creation of this image, was deeply involved in sexualising art because as he saw it sex was the truest , rawest expression of our nature. He does this by using and accentuating body parts in the image with strong colour. His view is that the creation of a work of art should speak about the artist and not simply show us the subject. Through eroticising the art it prevents it from becoming purely decorative.

In his speech 'eroticising the world' in 1982 Artigas talks about the creative process of lithography : If I want power, impact, a startling image, I use lithography. With the technique of printing directly off the stone, it is possible to get a maximum of ink on the paper. This direct impression from stone or zinc allows the kind of powerful color that is impossible to get with an off-set process. (Think, for example, of the strength of Toulouse Lautrec’s posters.)

Artigas was born on 18 June 1938 in Boulogne-Billancourt (near Paris). His father was Josep Llorens Artigas who worked closely with Miró and Pablo Picasso. Artigas was able to work for Miró, whilst still a teenager, because of his father's relationship with the artist.

Joan trained at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris where he met the Swiss sculptor Alberto Giacometti who encouraged him to establish his own studio and concentrate on sculpture. Artigas had some success and supplied his expertise to the cubists Georges Braque and Marc Chagall.

When Artigas created the 7,200 tiles for the Miró Wall he coloured the tiles based on an image which Miró had created. Using that scale model, he marked out each section on an individual 20 by 36 centimetres (7.9 in × 14.2 in) tile. The artwork includes the signatures of both artists. Artigas' signature is dated 1979.

Joan was later called to return to assist Miró when his father decided to retire. His father had worked with Miró for twenty years creating large murals including examples for UNESCO, IBM and the Palacio de Exposiciones y Congresos in Madrid. Artigas worked with Miró on " Dona i Ocell " one of his last large works which was covered in broken tiles by Artigas. In this case the tiles remind the viewer of Gaudi's work.

In 1982 Antoni Tàpies won the Gold Medal of Catalonia for a mosaic in the Plaça de Catalunya in Sant Boi de Llobregat. It was Artigas who constructed the ceramics for this prize winning exhibit.

Although often collaborating with other artists, Joan continued creating his own art and was awarded his first solo exhibition in America in 1982. He has been a visiting artist at two American universities and has created a foundation to celebrate his father's work. Gardy-Artigas serves on the board of the foundation Fundació Joan Miró in Barcelona.

Dimensions: 77.5cm x 37.5cm x 1.5cm.