Between Memory and Symbol: Sculptures for a New Mythology
- Antoni Miquel Morro
- Nov 3
- 3 min read
Interview with Antoni Miquel Morro
1. Could you tell us about your background and artistic journey?
I was born in 1980 in Mallorca, the largest of the Balearic Islands. I grew up with my sisters, Lourdes and Àngels, in a beautiful and welcoming natural environment. Our father, a painter, and our mother instilled in us from an early age a deep sensitivity toward beauty and art. I feel very fortunate for the childhood I had, and I believe that this early harmony, in some way, is reflected in my work.
My interest in drawing led me to study Fine Arts in Barcelona. Although I initially thought I would dedicate myself to painting, discovering the sculpture studios at the Faculty was a turning point. From that moment on, I felt that my true language was matter and volume. I believe sculptors have the privilege of engaging in dialogue with a wide diversity of materials. And while I value the expressive possibilities of new media, I feel a particular affinity for wood, metal, and especially stone.
2. Could you talk about the themes of your work and your sources of inspiration?
Through sculpture, I explore how myths can be rewritten. I am interested in how a new reading of the past can help us imagine other ways of living and relating to one another. In my work, woman occupies the symbolic center of this process — as sacred image, archetype, and transformative principle.
I feel that archaeological objects preserve a silent wisdom. Fragments, figures, and traces of clay or stone evoke another memory of the world — one in which the feminine was not peripheral but essential. Reinterpreting these forms through contemporary art is, for me, a way of questioning patriarchy and opening a space for collective healing and empowerment.
A key concept that guides this exploration is mythopoiesis — the creation of new myths. Philosophers such as Mary Daly and Carol Christ have pointed out that the absence of divine feminine references has operated for centuries as a form of symbolic censorship, silencing women’s voices and denying them the power to define the world. Mythopoiesis responds to that absence: it rewrites stories by placing female figures —goddesses, heroines, and ancestors— at the center of a new cosmogony.
This is also the driving force behind my work: to reinterpret archaeological cultures through art as a means of rethinking identity and gender equality. If material culture shapes our vision of the world, it can also transform it. To recreate and resignify ancient images is, for me, a way of projecting new symbolic models into the present.
My sources of inspiration are diverse, but I always return to figures such as Inanna, the great Sumerian goddess, or the Minoan Potnia — presences that embody power, fertility, mystery, and cyclical transformation. In these images lies an archetypal force that transcends time. Contemporary feminism has revisited them as alternatives to dominant narratives, and I try to continue this dialogue through matter and form.
Between these ancient traditions and the sensitivity of our own time there stands an inevitable bridge: Marija Gimbutas. Her research on “Old Europe” —those pre-patriarchal societies where the goddess was omnipresent— has profoundly influenced my work. Beyond academic controversies, Gimbutas left us an immense symbolic legacy: the intuition that there may once have been a time when balance, peace, and creativity were central values.
My purpose is not to reconstruct an idealized past, but to invoke new myths capable of transforming the present. From my masculine perspective, I wish to contribute to the re-signification of feminine archetypes, to imagine alternative genealogies, and to create a symbolic space where body, earth, and community are recognized as parts of a single living organism.
Ultimately, I believe that art is not only representation, but also a tool for creating meaning and shaping ideology. When we create, we intervene in the way the world is imagined. The mythopoietic reading of ancient symbols does not offer absolute truths, but it opens the possibility of rethinking masculinity, femininity, and our place in the world from a more inclusive perspective.
3. How does your artistic life influence other aspects of your life?
I have been fortunate to combine artistic research with teaching. I currently have the honor of teaching stone and wood carving at Escola d’Art Llotja in Barcelona, which this year celebrates its 250th anniversary. I have also worked in secondary education, in special education schools, in vocational training centers, and at the university level.
This diversity of experiences has deeply enriched me, and not having to rely on the sale of my work to make a living has allowed me to create with complete freedom — within the reach of my own abilities.
Website : https://www.antonimiquel.com/en/
