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Two women stand in an art gallery, their backs to the viewer, gazing at three small drawings by Pablo Picasso: "Head of a Woman with a Chignon (Fernande)," "Head of a Woman (Fernande)," and "Fernande Olivier." Two women stand in an art gallery, their backs to the viewer, gazing at three small drawings by Pablo Picasso: "Head of a Woman with a Chignon (Fernande)," "Head of a Woman (Fernande)," and "Fernande Olivier."

Picasso: Drawing from Life

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Exhibition

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  • Galleries 124–27
  • Closed
  • Galleries 124–27
  • Closed

While often presented as an artistic genius, a singular force solely responsible for his creative output, Pablo Picasso would not have achieved the immense success he did without the many people who supported him.

This exhibition, centered on the artist’s works on paper, brings into focus Picasso’s life and art as it intersected with a network of artists, dealers, printers, family members, and lovers. The many women with whom he had passionate and sometimes volatile relationships inspired him and are frequently represented in his art, as are several friends and family members. A complex person, Picasso represented his subjects with both tenderness and aggression. Behind-the-scenes, the printers and dealers with whom Picasso collaborated helped him realize and bring attention to thousands of works. These partnerships, both professional and personal, allowed Picasso to gain international renown.

A close-up pencil drawing of one side of a light-skinned young woman's face. Her head is slightly turned to the right to show the left side of her nose and mouth as well as her left eye and cheek. The drawing is heavily shaded.

Visiting Picasso: Drawing from Life

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A work made of gouache on tan wood pulp board.

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

A work made of black chalk and opaque watercolor on tan laid paper.

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

A work made of gouache, watercolor, and black and ochre chalks, manipulated with stump and wet brush, on cream laid paper.

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Featuring over 60 works—drawings, prints, and illustrated books, along with a handful of paintings and a sculpture—the exhibition spans his rich and varied 70-year career. Arranged chronologically, the presentation moves from Picasso’s student years in Barcelona, Spain, to his formative and collaborative invention of Cubism in Paris in 1908 and on to his return to representation in the 1920s. Picasso’s production exploded in the 1930s; fueled by his tumultuous personal life and the horrors of WWII, his imagery ranged from war-torn victims to predatory mythological creatures. His last two decades were marked by continued creative experimentation as Picasso, now personally and financially secure, largely retreated into his studio in the south of France.

Picasso over the decades

A work made of graphite on ivory laid paper (discolored to cream).

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

A close-up pencil drawing of one side of a light-skinned young woman's face. Her head is slightly turned to the right to show the left side of her nose and mouth as well as her left eye and cheek. The drawing is heavily shaded.

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

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Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

A work made of lithograph in black on ivory wove paper.

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

A lithograph in black on ivory paper presents a stylized portrayal of a young girl with a doll. She is depicted in three-quarter view. Curved and radiating lines convey the curvature of her cheeks and chin. Her dark hair is cut in a short bob with bangs, and she wears ruffled shirt.

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

A black-and-white print of a woman in a cubist style. She is depicted in a frontal view with thick lines and solid black shapes indicating facial features and body parts. Striped shapes on either side of her head and shoulders recall the striped headcloth worn by ancient Egyptian rulers. Her naked breasts and large hands take up the lower portion of the composition.

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

A print in gray and red-brown on cream paper depicting, in an abstracting style, a wine bottle, a lamp, a cut ham, a glass, a cut onion, and a knife.

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

A work made of graphite on ivory wove paper.

Pablo Picasso

© 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Presented on the 50th anniversary of the artist’s death, this exhibition joins hundreds of presentations around the world in celebrating Picasso.

Picasso: Drawing from Life is curated by Jay A. Clarke, Rothman Family Curator, Prints and Drawings, and Emily Ziemba, director of curatorial administration and research curator, Prints and Drawings.

Learn more

Continue your exploration of Picasso as an artist with our self-guided tour Picasso’s Circles of Influence.

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