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Time of India
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Picasso's iconic works at Gagosian NY
Critic and Curator Uma Nair has been writing for the past 35 years on art and culture She has written as critic for Times of India and Economic Times. She believes that art is a progressive sojourn. She learnt by looking at the best shows in Washington D.C. and New York. As author her most important books are Reverie with Raza and Meditations on Trees by Ompal Sansanwal. LESS ... MORE Paris museums have plenty of Picassos, but Paloma Picasso's collections at Gagosian in NY are singular and gripping, reflecting a daughter's taste, love and experiences for her father. Pablo Picasso stands tall for his iconic portraits and groundbreaking contribution to modern art across the world. This collection is fascinatingly strong and brings back Pablo Picasso's words of 1945. Lifelong practice 'What do you think an artist is ? An imbecile who has only eyes ? On the contrary, he's a political being, constantly alive to heart-rending, fiery, or happy events . . . Painting is not done to decorate apartments. It is an instrument of war for attack and defence against the enemy.' Gagosian says the essential element of Picasso's lifelong practice, precisely what keeps his work both relevant and timeless, is his ability to stay fluid, in contradiction, always in restless anxiety and flirting with making a failure of it all. Picasso: Tête-à-tête, presented in partnership with the artist's daughter Paloma Picasso presents the full span of the artist's career—1896 to 1972— including nearly a dozen works that have not been shown for decades. Drawn largely from Picasso's estate, Picasso: Tête-à-tête is the final exhibition to be held at Gagosian's flagship 980 Madison Avenue gallery in New York. Gagosian closes its doors in New York with a Picasso show that rings through its magnificent spaces in a never before unveiling by his daughter Paloma . The sculptures, drawings and the paintings all create a carnival of form and fervour and his words sing till eternity. ' You should constantly try to paint like someone else. But the thing is, you can't! You would like to. You try. But it turns out to be a botch. . . . And it's at the very moment you make a botch of it that you're yourself.' Founder and galleries Larry Gagosian says: ' I have been fortunate to present more than twenty exhibitions dedicated to Pablo Picasso throughout my career, and it seems only fitting that a blockbuster show of the artist's work should close out our time at 980 Madison. It is incredibly exciting to partner with Paloma on her first major international exhibition, and to bring to light so many works that have never been shown before. The finest portrait is Femme au béret bleu assise dans un fauteuil gris, manches rouges (Marie-Thérèse), 1937. Almond, watchful eyes glow , the eyelids, the mouth, the fragmented angular fingers — splay out as well as dominate in in this fluid, half-classical, half-Cubist profile. Marie is a gentle, graceful spirit. This portrait is an elegant cadence of colours and fragmented forms that become a singular whole. The cubist idioms, the colours in softened sensual hues, this portrait is perhaps the testimony to the fulcrum of his creative genius. His formal experimentation and emotional intensity is embodied in Femme au béret ( Marie Therese) shown in profile but with her features presented frontally in the style that he had pioneered in his earlier portraits . His employment of a bold, primary palette and an emphatic handling of colours tones mark this work out from the depictions of the early 1930s and chart Picasso's evolving relationship with his muse. Femme au vase de houx (Marie-Thérèse) The second portrait of Marie also from the same show is treated a little differently but ever so charismatic and enchanting. The still life and the portrait create an ensemble of elegance. Picasso's feminine portraits sing to us so many years hence. The crimson red lends this work an intensity that is only heightened by the colours of Marie's face as well as her clothing, the yellows, blues and greens, which are thrust into such bold relief through their contrast with the near-monochrome background. Meanwhile, the almost lavender-infused skin becomes like cool marble in contrast to these vivid colors. Picasso has filled the composition with jagged lines, peaks and striations, not least through the hatching of the hairnet of the title, bringing the sense of edginess and volatility that is often associated with his depictions of Dora. At the same time, the statuesque poise and the curves and swirls on her cheek bring out a sense of tenderness that is heightened by the skin tones, which themselves recall some of Picasso's earliest, less-stylised images of his lover. Stirring still lives and monochromatic magic Through the show, so ingenious in display we can gaze at monochromatic morsels that pull the human faces and bodies into geometric the few sculptures and the drawings and paintings we sense the passion and force of this artist who gave the world a new language. Sometimes it is brooding colour tones within contours of vitality, sometimes it is the lithe lines of a sculptural flat linearity. Corridors of the past The beauty of these unseen works is hinged on the words of Picasso himself that bring forward the corridors of conversations in the past. 'I shift about too much, I move too often,' Picasso told André Verdet in 1963. 'You see me here, and yet I've already changed, I'm already elsewhere. I never stay in one place and that's why I have no style.' This was evident in Picasso's very first exhibition, a show of sixty-four paintings and an unknown number of drawings at Ambroise Vollard's Paris gallery in 1901. In his review of that show, the critic Félicien Fagus wrote, 'One can easily discern . . . numerous probable influences. . . . Each is fleeting, no sooner caught than dropped. . . .The danger for him lies in this very impetuousness, which could so easily lead to facile virtuosity and easy success.' Run your eyes over the masterpieces from small to medium , and you are met with the sinuous, flowing lyricism that has been inspired by Marie-Thérèse Walter. At once we sense the atmospheric terms and fecund forms as well as pulsing colour and brilliance of an artist who still engages in mediums and materials. Picasso's daughter Paloma Picasso says: ' I was delighted when Larry suggested we work together on a significant exhibition. Showing my father's work as he wanted it to be seen—in conversation across subjects and periods—is a fitting tribute to his legacy. A number of the works we selected haven't been seen since my father had them in his studio and to have them reunited with important examples from other collections will be a very special event.' Images: Gagosian NY Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
Time of India
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
A Picasso show from Pablo's daughter
Picasso, the youngest of Pablo Picasso 's four children, vividly remembers sitting on the floor of her father's studio, drawing on paper as he worked at his easel."Because I was a very quiet little girl, I was able to stay with him," she said in a recent interview. "He would let me stay next to him while he was painting because I could spend hours without uttering a word."I knew we were not supposed to touch anything," she added. "He would always say, 'You can touch with your eyes, but not with your hand.'"Now Picasso has helped organize a show of her father's work at Gagosian gallery . Some of the pieces in the exhibition have been in her possession and have never been seen by the public."The idea was to do a show where it wouldn't be chronological," she said. "It would be more the different works talking to each other."The show, "Picasso: Tete-a-tete," is an unusual role for Picasso, given that for the last 45 years she has focused on her jewelry collection for Tiffany & two years ago she took over the stewardship of her father's estate, after the death of her brother Claude Ruiz-Picasso (Ruiz was the name of Picasso's paternal grandfather). The Picasso Administration manages copyright issues and licensing a recent afternoon at 980 Madison Ave. -- the show is Gagosian's last in that building because it has been leased to other tenants -- Picasso walked through the gallery as her father's work was being the highlights she pointed out was "Femme au Vase de Houx (Marie-Thérèse)," an oil and charcoal on canvas from 1937, which she used to keep in New York and then in Switzerland, where she now also paused before "Nu drappe, assis dans un fauteuil," a 1923 oil painting of Picasso's first wife, Russian ballerina Olga Khokhlova, nude and sitting in an armchair, that at first looks like a simple line drawing but that Paloma Picasso said is actually very layered. "It's a very touching, moving portrait," she said. "You can see that it's a real person who's there."The exhibition includes six drawings, 24 sculptures and 38 paintings. They date from throughout the artist's career, 1896 to 1972, and showcase Picasso's expansive range. (She refers to her father as "Pablo.")"Some of them are really special, beautiful examples of various periods -- from an incredible self-portrait to a later Marie-Thérèse," said Larry Gagosian, referring to Picasso's muse and mistress Marie-Thérèse Walter, a French model. "It's very exciting to show works by arguably the most famous artist that's ever lived that haven't been seen."Only a few pieces are for sale -- prices are not publicly disclosed -- and Picasso said she aimed to show the many attributes of her father through the artworks. "They can be both very soft and strong at the same time," she said. "It's all of the things that make Picasso who he is. I think we are really doing him justice here."Elegant and regal at 76, Picasso radiates deep affection and respect for her father, though she said she is well aware of the flaws that complicated his relationship to her mother, Françoise Gilot, a French painter 40 years his junior, who died in 2023."He was difficult at times, and I could see it with my own eyes," she said. "Most people don't behave well all the time. Why should we expect him to be perfect?"Paloma and her brother Claude were the children of the couple; Gilot left the artist in 1953, and angered him with her 1964 memoir, "Life With Picasso," in which she described his abuse, including an occasion when he held a lit cigarette against her cheek. Picasso severed contact with Claude and Paloma after the book's publication and never contacted them again, which Paloma Picasso has described as painful.
New York Times
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
A Picasso Show From Pablo's Daughter
Paloma Picasso, the youngest of Pablo Picasso's four children, vividly remembers sitting on the floor of her father's studio, drawing on paper as he worked at his easel. 'Because I was a very quiet little girl, I was able to stay with him,' she said in a recent interview. 'He would let me stay next to him while he was painting because I could spend hours without uttering a word. 'I knew we were not supposed to touch anything,' she added. 'He would always say, 'You can touch with your eyes, but not with your hand.'' Now Ms. Picasso has helped organize a show of her father's work at Gagosian gallery, which opened on April 18. Some of the pieces in the exhibition have been in her possession and have never been seen by the public. 'The idea was to do a show where it wouldn't be chronological,' she said. 'It would be more the different works talking to each other.' The show, 'Picasso: Tête-à-tête,' is an unusual role for Ms. Picasso, given that for the last 45 years she has focused on her jewelry collection for Tiffany & Company. About two years ago she took over the stewardship of her father's estate, after the death of her brother Claude Ruiz-Picasso (Ruiz was the name of Picasso's paternal grandfather). The Picasso Administration manages copyright issues and licensing deals. . On a recent afternoon at 980 Madison Avenue — the show is Gagosian's last in that building because it has been leased to other tenants — Ms. Picasso walked through the gallery as her father's work was being installed. Among the highlights she pointed out was 'Femme au Vase de Houx (Marie-Thérèse),' an oil and charcoal on canvas from 1937, which she used to keep in New York and then in Switzerland, where she now lives. She also paused before 'Nu drappe, assis dans un fauteuil,' a 1923 oil painting of Picasso's first wife, the Russian ballerina Olga Khokhlova, nude and sitting in an armchair, that at first looks like a simple line drawing but that Ms. Picasso said is actually very layered. 'It's a very touching, moving portrait,' she said. 'You can see that it's a real person who's there.' The exhibition includes six drawings, 24 sculptures and 38 paintings. They date from throughout the artist's career, 1896 to 1972, and showcase Picasso's expansive range. (She refers to her father as 'Pablo.') 'Some of them are really special, beautiful examples of various periods — from an incredible self-portrait to a later Marie-Thérèse,' said Larry Gagosian, referring to Picasso's muse and mistress. 'It's very exciting to show works by arguably the most famous artist that's ever lived that haven't been seen.' Only a few pieces are for sale — prices are not publicly disclosed — and Ms. Picasso said she aimed to show the many attributes of her father through the artworks. 'They can be both very soft and strong at the same time,' she said. 'It's all of the things that make Picasso who he is. I think we are really doing him justice here.' Elegant and regal at 76, Ms. Picasso radiates deep affection and respect for her father, though she said she is well aware of the flaws that complicated his relationship to her mother, Françoise Gilot, a French painter 40 years his junior, who died in 2023. 'He was difficult at times, and I could see it with my own eyes,' she said. 'Most people don't behave well all the time. Why should we expect him to be perfect?' Ms. Picasso and her brother Claude were the children of the couple; Gilot left the artist in 1953, and angered him with her 1964 memoir, 'Life With Picasso,' in which she described his abuse, including an occasion when he held a lit cigarette against her cheek. Pablo Picasso severed contact with both Claude and Paloma after the book's publication, and never contacted them again, which Ms. Picasso has described as painful. 'When my mother wrote the book, she wanted to make him less of a god and more of a man,' Ms. Picasso said in the gallery interview. 'And it doesn't make him less great where he's great. He's the greatest. But he can also have weaknesses. And that's OK. 'Even though you can criticize him,' she continued, 'that doesn't make his work irrelevant.' Despite her father's reputation for mistreating women, Ms. Picasso has insisted that he was a man of his time and that some of the accusations are exaggerated. 'My father didn't only have relationships with very young girls," she told the Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia last year. 'He was 40 years older than my mother, but she was not a girl at all. I don't think he was a man who abused women or thought they were inferior to men.' The presence of Ms. Picasso herself permeates the Gagosian exhibition — in a portrait of her holding a doll, which has her face; in the wooden dolls that her father made for her. There are also black-and-white family photographs, including one of Ms. Picasso in a short black bob and flip-flops, perched on a stool next to her father and their dog. 'This is the dining room,' she said. 'We would be having lunch and then — the minute lunch was finished — he would push everything and just start working right there.' Because her mother was also an artist, 'the painting and the living were completely intermixed,' Ms. Picasso added. 'It was one world.' Young Paloma was shy and didn't always love having her father stopped on the street for autographs. But then she had something of an epiphany upon realizing that she would want to meet the daughter of Charlie Chaplin. 'I thought, 'Well, if I want to meet Geraldine Chaplin,' she said, 'I should not be upset when people want to meet me because I'm the daughter of Picasso.'' She was 24 when her father died in 1973, and felt in part responsible for preserving, protecting and promoting his legacy. 'When you are the daughter of somebody that famous — and for such good reasons — you have this sense that you have to share with the rest of the world,' she said. She and Claude entered a legal fight that in 1974 established them as legitimate heirs. And in 1989, after years of squabbling among all Picasso's heirs including his widow, Jacqueline Roque, over the distribution of the thousands of artworks he left behind and commercial rights to his name, a French court appointed Claude as the estate's administrator. Claude sometimes clashed with his half sibling Maya Ruiz-Picasso, the daughter of the French model Marie-Thérèse Walter, over how to run the administration. The estate's proceeds are now divided among all of Pablo's descendants. (Maya died in 2022 at 87; Paloma and Claude's other half sibling, Paulo — Picasso's son with the dancer Olga Khokhlova — died at 54 in 1975.) Ms. Picasso said her brother Claude, with whom she described herself as close, did 'a fabulous job at the Picasso administration.' As head of the administration herself now, Ms. Picasso said she is trying to incorporate her family members. 'The nephews and nieces, they've all grown up. And they wanted for it to be more collegial,' she said. 'I'm at the head of it, but I do report to them much more than Claude had to, and when I make a decision, I take their point of view in much more.' Having established an independently successful career as a designer, Ms. Picasso said she feels ready to take on a greater role in the estate. 'I made every effort for my work not to be connected to my father, which is why now I can do it,' she said. 'I've proven to myself that I can exist on my own merits. I think I had to prove to myself that I could be worth something on my own.'
