PABLO PICASSO
CELEBRATING 50 YEARS

50 years since his death, the legacy of Pablo Picasso continues to thrill and inspire artists and art lovers worldwide. He was the 20th century’s artist in residence, his idiosyncratic eye refracting the turbulence, traumas, dreams and visions of his times into stunning visions, gleeful affronts to convention that still pulsate with energy to this day.

To commemorate his life and work, an extensive programme of exhibitions, initiatives and events has been planned around the world, especially in the host countries, Spain and France. In Spain, the focus will be on the Spanish cities with the strongest ties to Picasso and which were a source of inspiration, leaving a mark on his personality and art.

“Death holds no fear for me,” Picasso was quoted as saying in Time magazine’s obituary of the artist. “It has a kind of beauty. What I am afraid of is falling ill and not being able to work. That’s lost time.”

In the years since his death, it is difficult to dispute Picasso’s influence. He was a painter, printmaker, sculptor, ceramicist, stage designer, poet and playwright. He co-founded the Cubist movement and paved the way for Surrealism. His impact on art was so seismic that historians have often spoken of art as it existed before and after Picasso.

It is no coincidence that his paintings are the most desirable among art collectors — his auction record sits at $179 million, for Les femmes d’Alger (Version ‘O’), 1955, sold at Christie’s in New York in 2015. It is one of the world’s most expensive works of art.

50 years after his death what continues to drive the Picasso market endlessly forward? “There is a difference between art and decoration,” says John Szoke, a well-known New York dealer who is one of the most knowledgeable people on Picasso’s prints, “and that’s what makes Picasso so special”. “He was one of the most significant artists of the 20th century. He was not only a tremendous artist but he had his finger on the heartbeat of the times and his art, though not political, is a reflection of the times. His technical mastery is also unparalleled — no one was as technically astute as Picasso”, states.