Pablo Picasso

Acquired by the present owner in New York in 1968

Tokyo; Kyoto; Nagoya, Pablo Picasso Exhibition Japan, 1964, no. 60

Christian Zervos, Pablo Picasso, Oeuvres de 1946-53, vol. XV, no. 285, illustrated p. 156
The Picasso Project, Picasso's Paintings, Watercolors, Drawings and Sculpture, The Fifties I, 1950-1955, San Francisco, 2002, no. 53-054, illustrated p. 128

Work is in excellent condition. Canvas is not lined. Surface is very slightly dirty. Under UV light: no inpainting is apparent.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Picasso discovered Vallauris, the location of the present work, in 1930 and lived in the Villa La Galoise from 1948 to 1954. In addition to working on his ceramics in Vallauris, the artist painted the distinctive landscape and gardens of the region, suffused with the bright colors of the sun-drenched architecture to be found there.

Writing about Picasso's landscapes from an earlier date, John Richardson noted: "Since he could never depict anything without to some degree identifying with it, Picasso assumes the role of genius loci in landscapes that constitute his first sustained confrontation with nature. He invests the trees with his own life force, as if he were God reinventing the universe in his image. 'I was to see my branches grow...that's why I started to paint trees; yet I never paint them from nature. My trees are myself"' (John Richardson, A Life of Picasso, 1907-1917, The Painter of Modern Life, vol. II, New York, 1996, p. 93).