Art and Picasso's goddesses

He was one of the art world's most famous womanisers, once saying: "There are only two kinds of women, goddesses and doormats."

 

Yet there was a softer side to Pablo Picasso, which is revealed in his personal collection showing the six women who were his muses.
These are to be sold after his family arranged an auction of nearly 200 items from his studio. Pics after cut...

MOST FAMOUS MUSE: 'Tête de Femme' (1935), inspired by Marie-Thérèse Walter, who hanged herself four years after the death of her lover, Spanish artist Pablo Picasso (1881 - 1973)
Image by: SOTHEBY 
 
Experts at Sotheby's said the effect of the works was like "looking over the shoulder" of Picasso, offering a glimpse of his emotional state and evolving style. Comprising 106 works on paper and 70 sculptures, the collection is expected to sell for up to £10-million on Friday, after being curated by his granddaughter, Marina Picasso.
Georgia Gold, co-head of the Impressionist and Modern Art day sale at Sotheby's, said the works featuring Picasso's muses were "extraordinary".

They begin with Fernande Olivier, who was Picasso's lover from 1904 to 1911. She posed for more than 60 portraits, providing inspiration during his Cubist period. A sketch of her is valued at between £80000 and £120000.
Olga Khokhlova, Picasso's first wife and the mother of his son, Paul, is the subject of a 1918 sketch.
A ballet dancer, Khokhlova was with him from 1917 to 1935, and is said to have bombarded him with hate mail after they parted, not divorcing after Picasso refused to divide his assets. The portrait, valued between £60000 and £80000, is described as sensitively drawn, with a "tenderness" characterising his feelings for her then.

His third and arguably most famous muse was Marie-Thérèse Walter, who was with Picasso from 1927 to 1936 and gave him a daughter. They met when she was 17 and he was still with Olga. But he would abandon her, too, when he moved on to his next mistress. She hanged herself four years after his death.
She is described as "blonde and bright" in the work, Femme en Costume du Bain (Marie-Therese), valued between £40000 and £60000.

Dora Maar, the photographer, who was with him from 1936 to 1944, appears in the 1939 sketch, Etudes Pour Femme Au Chapeau, valued between £50000 and £70000.
For a similar estimate is the sculpture,Femme Dubout, inspired by Françoise Gilot, a 21-year-old law student, 40 years junior, and mother of two of his children.
His second wife, Jacqueline Roque, in his life for 11 years and the inspiration behind more than 400 works, appears in Visage de Femme, valued between £180000 to £250000.
Gold said: "His wives and lovers were integral to his career; they were very much the subjects that inspired him."

Source- Times