A friend who was born in the same year as Picasso, Gargallo was a sculptor who initially specialized in traditional casting techniques. After coming into contact with Cubism, he began producing sculptures using openwork and multiple planes. This portrait is displayed at the same height as Picasso himself, 163 centimeters.」
Picasso often appeared in his own works, his method of overlaying the main motif in the composition with an image of himself being one of the driving forces behind his creativity. In one work he may depict himself as a Minotaur, a half-animal, half-human monster, while in another he could be the artist painting the model. His works express love and pathos, violence and death, or the joy of life, and this way of identifying with his subjects provided him with a means of expressing the emotions that welled up within as well as a method of manifesting what he held in his heart.
In this exhibition, the collection has been divided according to 20 themes, and we hope that these will provide the viewer with an opportunity to discover Picasso's images of himself within his creative motifs.」
「私が歩んできた道を
すべて地図に記し
線で結んだとしたら、
それはミノタウロスを
表わすかもしれない。
―― パブロ・ピカソ
If all the ways I have been
along were marked on a map
and joined up with a line,
it might represent a minotaur.
— Pablo Picasso」
「ミノトーロマシー」
原版画(1935年):パブロ・ピカソ
制作(1982年):イヴェット・コキール=プランスタピスリー 318x 450cm
Tapestry made by Yvette Cauquil-Prince after a work by Pablo Picasso
This modest portrait, drawn rapidly and unpretentiously, combines with the rough texture of the pottery to create a simple, yet sublime image of a woman, reminiscent of primitive art. Picasso even used all kinds of material as he was turning even this shard of pottery into a work of art.」
In 1917, Picasso toured historical sights and art galleries in the Italian cities of Rome, Napoli, Pompeii, Florence, and Milan and was struck by the culture and customs of Italy. The trip also softened his artistic style, and from around this period he began to produce works featuring voluptuous women.」
This work was likely modeled by Marie-Thérèse Walter, who was then just 19. As his marriage deteriorated, Picasso sought comfort from the young woman who did not know his status as a painter, and she began to feature in many beautiful works.」
When Picasso drew the Saltimbanques (circus performers), he chose not to depict them on a flamboyant stage, but rather to show them with their families, including young children, relaxing with friends, or looking after their horses. The study of the real world and its people formed the foundation of Picasso's art.」
In Picasso's later years, he often depicted children alongside adults. The child follows the adult as the adult hopes the child can help them recapture some of their youthful vigor. Children provide a measure of support as the old painter fights against aging and death, with both generations assisting each other.」
Picasso had a deep interest in how children see the world, and often tried to look at things from a child's viewpoint. This is an experimental work in which he divided the composition between the deformed image of a child and a colorful background, while splitting the overall work into six sections, simultaneously combining elements of painting and sculpture.」
Throughout his artistic life, one of Picasso's most important themes was childhood. Some of his works focus on children generally without depicting specific individuals, and others show his own children, Paul, Maya, Claude and Paloma.」
Yvette Cauquil-Prince opened a tapestry studio in Paris in 1959 where she worked with many of the major artists of the 20th century such as Braque, Chagall and Ernst. She also won Picasso's complete trust, and while he was still alive, she produced numerous tapestries for him. Working from actual size photographs, it would take her between 2 weeks and 2 months to weave a 1m² section. This work took her 10 months to complete.」
Picasso liked to use the Minotaur, a half-man, half-bull that appears in Greek mythology, as a motif in his work. A brutal, lustful monster symbolizing evil, violence and death, he overlaid it with the bestiality that existed within himself. In this work, the Minotaur can be seen ravishing a woman fighter in the center of the work while the whole scene is illuminated by a young girl, the theme being truth and innocence defeating evil and violence.」
In 1917, Picasso visited Rome with Jean Cocteau. His encounter with the sculpture and ruins of ancient Rome, as well as the work of the great masters of the Renaissance, later bore fruit in his Neoclassicism. In this work, the subject has been deconstructed, reconstructed and rendered with pointillist touches to create the image of a woman standing in bright light.」