Pablo Picasso

Sir Kenneth Clark, London
The Red Cross, London (a gift from the above and sold: Christie's, London, October 9, 1942, lot 45)
Sale: Christie's, London, December 4, 1984, lot 196
Private Collection, California (acquired at the above sale and sold: Christie's, New York, May 9, 2000, lot 333)
Private Collection, Switzerland (acquired at the above sale)

The Three Graces were a recurrent theme in Picasso’s work throughout the 1920’s, and exemplifies his return to classicism and a more traditional figurative style.  These years witnessed a widespread artistic reaction against radical pre-war movements such as Cubism, Expressionism and Primitivism, and Picasso’s neo-classicism reflected the cultural mood of the period.  The reassuring revival of antiquity provided a stable and conformist artistic outlet following the trauma of war.

This drawing of the Three Graces, dating from 1931, belongs to a renaissance of classicism in Picasso’s graphic work which was connected to a set of commissions for illustrations of classic texts which he received in the late 1920’s.  The sinuous lines of the drawing reflect Picasso’s admiration for the draftsmanship of antiquity, especially the outline style of 5th century BC Athenian vase painting.  It is also a stylistic reference to 19th Century Neo-Classicism, and particularly the elegant line-drawings by Ingres that Picasso was able to admire in the Louvre.