Pablo Picasso Dipinti 1918-1968 Acquarelli, disegni, incisioni e litografie 1904-1972

The Pablo Picasso exhibition, held at Galleria dello Scudo from March 19, 1983, gathered a selection of paintings such as Nature morte, verre et journal (1914-1915), Paysage cubiste (1918), canvases of the 1920s such as Morceau de poisson (1922) and Verre taillé (1923), here joined by paintings from the 1940s and 1950s, including Nature morte à la corbeille de fruits (1942), La liseuse, fond noir (1953) and Buste de femme (1953), formerly owned by Curt Valentin, New York. Furthermore, the 1960s are represented by one of the large canvases belonging to Le déjeuner sur l’herbe cycle (1961), hinting at the comparison between Picasso and Manet, and then three works from the series Le peintre et son modèle (1963), up to the great figure of mousquetaire appearing in Homme à la pipe (1968), with all its vibrant colors.

Le repas frugal (1904), an etching opening La Suite des Saltimbanques, world-famous due to the reference to one of the best known subjects belonging to the “Blue Period” (1901-1904), introduces the wide section dedicated to Picasso’s graphic work, proposing some excellent works belonging to the series Le Chef-d’Oeuvre Inconnu (1927), Les Métamorphoses d’Ovide (1930-1931), and La Suite Vollard (1930-1937) commissioned to the artist by the well-known Parisian merchant and inspired by classical mythology.

The two etching and aquatint Sueño y Mentira de Franco, made on January 8, 1937 and gathered in a folder with a prose poem by Picasso on the pain for Guernica, convey the artist’s indignation towards the horror of war. General Francisco Franco is represented as a mad, mythical and monstrous figure, destroying classical Spanish sculpture and, in another detail, fighting a bull that symbolizes Spain.

The exhibition path dedicated to Picasso’s graphic work ends with many lithographs dated between 1940 and 1950, plates from Le Cocu Magnifique (1966) and erotic etchings from Suite 347 (1968).