Pablo Picasso Originals: From the Côte d’Azur to Chicago

Picasso's Pottery

 Pablo Picasso lived in Paris during World War ll. The Nazis occupied France from 1940 through 1944, and Picasso was often harassed in his studio by the Gestapo. He painted, but had no exhibitions during the occupation, since his work did not fit into the acceptable Nazi parameters of art.

When the war was over, Picasso visited, then moved to, the southeastern town of Vallauris, where he met Suzanne and Georges Ramié, owners of the Madoura Pottery works. The Ramiés gave Picasso access to their ceramic studio. He would produce work and they would sell it. Picasso's collaboration with Madoura Pottery lasted more than twenty five years. It was at the Madoura factory, in 1953, that Picasso met Jacqueline Roque, who became his second wife in 1961. They remained together until Picasso's death in 1973.

The Playfulness of Picasso's Pottery

The first objects that Picasso created were simple plates and bowls. As his proficiency with clay and glaze progressed, his work became more sophisticated. Pieces like Poission and Femme, both created at the Madoura Pottery works, are not only expertly done, but also have a playful quality about them, as if the burden and sorrows of the war years had been lifted from his shoulders. Both Poission and Femme are for sale at Surovek Gallery.

The Villa in Mougins on the Côte d'Azur

Picasso continued to create pottery throughout his lifetime. He bought an estate in Mougins, just five miles north of the Madoura pottery, in 1961, where he lived and worked for the remainder of his life.

After Jacqueline died, in 1986, the property was abandoned and sat empty for thirty years. It was restored a few years ago and will be auctioned by Christie's real estate next moth. Bidding will start at 20.2 million euros ($24 million).

The estate sits on eight acres of landscaped grounds, the garden restored to Picasso's original 1960s design. The house now has air conditioning, a pool, pool house, tennis court, gym, guest house, caretaker's house and a wine cellar, with space for 5,000 bottles. Prospective buyers can view the house at the end of this month in anticipation of the auction on October 12th.

From Mougins to Chicago

"We dedicate this celebrated work this morning with the belief that what is strange to us today will be familiar tomorrow."

– Mayor Richard J.Daley, Chicago

While living in Mougins, Picasso was commissioned to create a sculpture for the Daley Plaza in Chicago. Picasso had never visited Chicago, In fact, he had never stepped foot in the United States, but he created a 160-ton, 50-foot tall, sculpture for the city.

Picasso was offered a fee of $100,000 to create the sculpture, but turned down the money and donated it to the city. It's possible that Picasso was thanking the city, because the Art Institute of Chicago was the first American museum to exhibit his work.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the sculpture's unveiling. It was placed in Daley Plaza on August 15, 1967. When Mayor Richard Daley unveiled the sculpture, it was received by the public, who were used seeing statues of recognizable figures, with a mixture of confusion and dismay. At the unveiling, Mayor Daley told the crowd of 25,000 onlookers, "We dedicate this celebrated work this morning with the belief that what is strange to us today will be familiar tomorrow."

Mayor Daley's belief has come to pass. Chicagoans refer to the sculpture, simply, as The Picasso. Every day they walk past it, children climb on it and visitors ask to see it. It inspired other sculptures, by Jean Dubuffet, Joan Miro and Marc Chagall, to be placed around the Loop.

The Picasso has become so "familiar" in our culture, that it has appeared in several movies, including Ferris Bueller's Day Off, The Fugitive and The Blues Brothers.

Pablo Picasso Originals For Sale at Surovek Gallery

In our gallery are Pablo Picasso originals, in clay and other media, in which Picasso worked. Please contact us for more information about Poisson, Femme or any of the other Pablo Picasso original works for sale at Surovek Gallery.