Lot 32
  • 32

Pablo Picasso

Estimate
220,000 - 280,000 EUR
bidding is closed

Description

  • Pablo Picasso
  • Nu assis et singe au chapeau
  • signed picasso and dated 7.8.72 (upper right)
  • ink on paper
  • 13 5/8 x 19 1/4 in.

Provenance

Galerie Louise Leiris, Paris (no. 015651; Ph. no. 64304)
Sale: Sotheby's, New York, 12th November 1987, lot 251
Thomas Ammann Fine Art, Zurich
Private collection (acquired in 1988)

Exhibited

Paris, Galerie Louise Leiris, Picasso, 172 dessins en noir et en couleurs, 1972-73,  no. 159, illustrated in the catalogue p. 108
Roma, Marlborough Gallery, Pablo Picasso. Opere dal 1912 al 1972, 1974-75, no. 16, illustrated in the catalogue
Zurich, Thomas Ammann Fine Art, 1988, no. 32, illustrated n.n.

Literature

Christian Zervos, Pablo Picasso. Œuvres de 1971-1972, vol. 33, Paris, 1978, no. 495, illustrated p.169

Condition

Executed on cream wove paper, not laid down, affixed to the mount intermittently along the extreme edges and floating in the mount. The lower and right edges are slightly deckled. Sheet is undulating and there are some flattened creases towards the centre of the upper edge. There is a tiny nick to the left part of the upper edge. The red ink has faded. This work is in good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

"Right til the end, Picasso devoted his body and soul to his art. His final works deliver a more personal message than that of other great painters in their twilight years. This is why his final period constitutes the culmination of his artistic evolution. It can cannot be described as a "swan song" since it is in fact the apotheosis of his career."
Gert Schiff, Picasso, The Last Years, 1963-1973 (exhibition catalogue) Gray Art Gallery & Study Center, New York University, New York, pp. 11-12

 

Painted less than a year before his death, Nu assis et singe au chapeau is a perfect example of the creative frenzy that took hold of Picasso in the last years of his life. Residing in his house in Mougins, the master never ceased to create, exploring all mediums, painting, drawing, ceramics or etching.

This drawing, remarkable for its precision, is part of the famous series of the "Peintre et son modèle" which became his favorite artistic subject in the 1960s. To quote Marie-Laure Bernadac, "Picasso painted, drew, engraved this subject so much throughout his life and from every possible angle that it almost became a genre in itself as with the landscape or the still life." (in Picasso, la monographie 1881-1973, Barcelona, 2000, p.439)

Nearing the end of his life, Picasso thus paid tribute to the work of the painter itself through these many works depicting the painter and his model. In the present work, Picasso reinterprets the eternal subject with an originality tinged with dark irony. If the female model is depicted with the crude eroticism characteristic of the painter's art at the end of his life, the painter has represented himself here as a monkey, a recurring metaphor of the artist in the art of the Spanish painter.