Anatomy of an Oyster by Rita Puig-Serra

Mother-of-pearl, which eventually becomes a pearl, begins to form when a foreign object enters the oyster. Anatomy of an Oyster by Rita Puig-Serra is a journey into the past, a reflection on the author’s childhood that helps contextualize her present. It tells a story of violence, reflection, and healing, based on the abuse she suffered in her family during childhood. Above all, it is an attempt to tell what needed to be told; a way of expressing what she could never tell her mother, who is now gone. And, at the same time, a way of telling it to herself. In this descent into the depths of the past, images and texts about the pearl formation process are combined with new and archival photographs, as well as brief notes that capture her emotional, physical, and familial memories. The pearl, which is the autobiography of an oyster, is the result of this exploration: a search to find it, understand it, and finally, extract it.

Rita Puig-Serra published the photobook Anatomy of an Oyster with Witty Books in 2023, a limited edition of 500 copies that sold out, and which she is now republishing with Call Vermell Llibres, based in Felanitx. The author will lead a photography workshop at the Fundació Toni Catany the following day, on Saturday, October 18, and also on October 19.

Presented by: Anna Manubens, Head of Public Programs at Fundació Miró Barcelona

Rita Puig-Serra Costa combines personal projects with commercial commissions. Her first project, Where Mimosa Bloom, was published in 2014 by Editions du Llic. In 2016, together with Dani Pujalte, she received the 20 Fotopress La Caixa grant to create the project “Good Luck with the Future,” which was also published as a book. She collaborated on the “Hiberticer” project with Salvi Danès and David Bestué, with support from Terralab.cat. In 2023, she published “Anatomy of an Oyster” with Witty Books. That same year, PhotoEspaña selected her to participate in its Futures Photography program. Her work, which is closely linked to literature, revolves around the concept of identity and how it is reinterpreted throughout life. It also explores the essence of human relationships and the influence that love, death, chance, and memories have on shaping our identity.

Anna Manubens is Head of Public Programs at the Joan Miró Foundation in Barcelona. From 2022 to 2025, she was Director of Hangar, a center for artistic research and production, also in Barcelona. Previously, she was Head of Public Programming at the CAPC, a museum of contemporary art in Bordeaux. From 2011 to 2014, she was part of the artist film community through the production company Auguste Orts and the artistic direction of the LOOP Festival.