Remedios Varo: The Myth of the Muses and the Magical Vision of a Catalan artist

Remedios Varo was a Catalonian-born surrealist painter who found refuge, and creative liberation, in Mexico after fleeing Europe during WWII. Varo was a visionary artist with a background in science, mysticism, and metaphysics, and she created otherworldly paintings that feel like dream maps.

Girona Spain Catalunya

Stone staircase Girona Catalunya

old stone walkway Girona Catalunya

Photos: Varo was born in Girona, Catalonia. She was part of the Catalonian surrealist movement of artists which included Salvador Dali, Rene Magritte and Antoni Gaudi (just to mention a few). Unsplash

Her art is filled with:

• Feminine archetypes

• Esoteric symbols

• Labyrinths, machinery, and stars

• Women merging with nature

• The sacredness of curiosity

To look at her work is to feel whispered to.

Varo wasn’t just painting from imagination: she was painting from a mythic state of consciousness. She lived in tune with the muse.

She blurred the lines between reality and dream, science and magic, logic and mystery. Her paintings didn’t just show creative energy. They invoked it. And for so many artists, writers, and other creative people today, Varo stands as a muse herself: someone who lived creatively, bravely, and independently.

Muses in the Modern World: Do They Still Exist?

Yes. A thousand times yes.

But they look different now. The muses no longer wear togas and crowns. They arrive through:

• A song that makes you cry

• A quote that unlocks something inside you

• A collage that flows out of your hands like it already existed

• A walk at dusk where you suddenly feel alive again

• A dream that won’t leave you alone

The muse isn’t a myth. She’s a feeling. A moment. A message. A reminder that the world is layered, symbolic, enchanted and that your voice matters.

What Remedios Varo Taught Us About Living with the Muse

1. Make mystery your friend. Varo wasn’t afraid to paint the strange, the unseen, the new. She trusted her inner visions even when they didn’t make sense to the rational mind.

2. Blend disciplines. She used her background in science, engineering, and esoteric philosophy to inform her art. Creativity doesn’t live in a box. It expands through integration.

3. Don’t wait to be 'discovered'. She created quietly, faithfully, for herself and the sacred act of making. The muse isn’t about fame. It’s about devotion.

4. Be curious about everything. Varo’s world was one of investigation, wonder, and imagination. She didn’t assume she knew. It was the not knowing that led her.

5. Make your life your canvas. Her entire being; her exile, her friendships, her solitude, her symbols was an expression of the art she made.

To live with the muse is to live with wonder. And wonder is the beginning of everything.

The collage shows some of Salvador Dali's art, his museum and the city Girona. Remedios Varo was born in Girona, and Dali was born in a small town just outside Girona, called Figueres.

Myths and Muses: Why We Still Need Them

In a world that often values speed, productivity, and logic, creative inspiration offers us something rare and precious:

A return to intuition. A relationship with beauty. A sacred pace. A deeper way of knowing.

The myth of the muse isn’t about waiting to be chosen. It’s about saying yes to your own inner invitation.

When we honor the muses, we honor creative living. We make space for magic, mystery, and meaning.We let ourselves be surprised again.

And just like the surrealist works of Remedios Varo, our lives become layered, luminous, and symbolic. Maybe not because we planned it, but because we allowed it.

How to Invite the Muse into Your Life

You don’t have to be a painter. You don’t have to be a poet.

But if you’re someone who feels deeply. Who notices shadows and sunsets. Who listens when your intuition speaks. Someone, who believes there’s more to life than what we see.

Then the muse is already walking with you.

I would love to hear your reflections on this topic. Join the conversation on LinkedIn, where I share more insights and invite dialogue with educators, creatives, and leaders worldwide. Connect to LinkedIn here.

Did this blog inspire you?

• Pin it!

• Pass it along to a fellow creative soul

• Share it to your Social Media

Louise Sommer (MA, Educational Psychology) is the founder of Louise Sommer Studio. She specialises in creative intelligence, learning design, and leadership communication across cultures. Through her writing, consulting, and workshops, Louise helps educators and leaders build learning cultures that think, feel, and grow.

Louise Sommer Studio Blog is a free space for learning created for educators, leaders, and creatives exploring the intersection of psychology, culture, and creative intelligence.

Louise Sommer (cand.pæd.psyk.) er grundlægger af Louise Sommer Studio. Hun er specialiseret i kreativ intelligens, læringsdesign og ledelseskommunikation på tværs af kulturer. Gennem sit arbejde med undervisning, rådgivning og workshops hjælper Louise undervisere og ledere med at udvikle læringskulturer, der tænker, føler og vokser.

Louise Sommer Studio Blog er et frit rum for læring, skabt for undervisere, ledere og kreative, der udforsker samspillet mellem psykologi, kultur og kreativ intelligens.