Picasso 1940-1960
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Top 10 Picasso Sculpture by painters Bust Groups Nude Animals Cats and lions Music and dance Orientalism
Calendar : 20th century 1940-1949 1941 1943 1948 1950-1959 1954 1955 1959
See also : Top 10 Picasso Sculpture by painters Bust Groups Nude Animals Cats and lions Music and dance Orientalism
Calendar : 20th century 1940-1949 1941 1943 1948 1950-1959 1954 1955 1959
Femme dans un Fauteuil by PICASSO
Intro
Pablo Picasso once said that Dora Maar had personified the war. This is certainly an exaggeration following their breakup. It remains true that Pablo was reading the evolution of the horrors of war in the attitude and expression of the hypersensitive Dora.
From Guernica to the Nazi Occupation, Dora Maar is indeed a Cassandra for Picasso. He chose in 1940 to refuse the exile and stay working in his studio of the rue des Grands Augustins but he knew that he was threatened by the new authorities. He lives in lockdown with his muse, whom he adores physically but who once again becomes the symbol of resistance to horror, or even quite simply the symbol of horror.
Dora inevitably becomes his only model and his main theme. A drawing 27 x 22 cm sold for € 52K by Sotheby's on December 7, 2016 is typical of this morbid drift. Dora's face is a double blister where nose and mouth take divergent directions. The time when the cubist use of a double angle of view provided another vigor to the image is over.
Picasso marks his instability in an unusual way by changing the date of the drawing by an erasure, from May 7, 1941 to June 7, 1941. He no longer controls time. We will not know if Dora Maar au Chat, featuring the animal which symbolizes the dangers of the outside world, was painted before or after this anxious frenzy of June 1941.
From Guernica to the Nazi Occupation, Dora Maar is indeed a Cassandra for Picasso. He chose in 1940 to refuse the exile and stay working in his studio of the rue des Grands Augustins but he knew that he was threatened by the new authorities. He lives in lockdown with his muse, whom he adores physically but who once again becomes the symbol of resistance to horror, or even quite simply the symbol of horror.
Dora inevitably becomes his only model and his main theme. A drawing 27 x 22 cm sold for € 52K by Sotheby's on December 7, 2016 is typical of this morbid drift. Dora's face is a double blister where nose and mouth take divergent directions. The time when the cubist use of a double angle of view provided another vigor to the image is over.
Picasso marks his instability in an unusual way by changing the date of the drawing by an erasure, from May 7, 1941 to June 7, 1941. He no longer controls time. We will not know if Dora Maar au Chat, featuring the animal which symbolizes the dangers of the outside world, was painted before or after this anxious frenzy of June 1941.
1
1941 Dora Maar au Chat
2006 SOLD for $ 95M by Sotheby's
Dora Maar au Chat is an oil on canvas 130 x 97 cm painted by Picasso in 1941. Among the many portraits that Picasso made of his mistress, it is one of the most meticulous, with vibrant colors.
Contrary to the artist's usual practice, it is dated by the year without indication of the day, thus appearing beside the rest of the work. Picasso gathered here his admiration and emotion in front of Dora. He emotionally departed from Dora in 1943 and from this specific painting before 1947.
Throughout Picasso's career, the excessively abundant work is dotted with some dazzling illuminations in which he expresses his deep feelings. Dora Maar au Chat is one of these masterpieces, alongside for example Le Garçon à la pipe, Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, La Minotauromachie, La Femme qui pleure and Les Femmes d'Alger.
It is war time. The armchair is a space that might seem open but is in fact an obstacle to freedom, like the throne of Innocent X by Velazquez. Dora is willing to react, with her elegant clothes and her big hat as for going out. She smiles.
And then there is the cat. It is very small. Perched on the back of the chair, it walks towards the woman who does not care at all about it. Black in the least contrasted part of the image, it is sneaky. Pablo and Dora did not like cats, these pets that scratch for a simple change of mood. They preferred dogs. For these reasons this tiny cat cannot be a personification of the artist. It is at best an unsolicited visitor, at worst the danger of the outside world.
The amalgamation between human and animal interested Picasso. In the same phase, he paints portraits of Dora with the muzzle of their Afghan hound. Here Dora's very long nails are in some way the claws of the cat.
Dora Maar au Chat was sold for $ 95M by Sotheby's on May 3, 2006, lot 14.
Grok thought :
Quote
Clown @ClownsTrenches Apr 27
Dora Maar au Chat – Pablo Picasso Price: $95.2 million (2006, Sotheby’s Auction)
Contrary to the artist's usual practice, it is dated by the year without indication of the day, thus appearing beside the rest of the work. Picasso gathered here his admiration and emotion in front of Dora. He emotionally departed from Dora in 1943 and from this specific painting before 1947.
Throughout Picasso's career, the excessively abundant work is dotted with some dazzling illuminations in which he expresses his deep feelings. Dora Maar au Chat is one of these masterpieces, alongside for example Le Garçon à la pipe, Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, La Minotauromachie, La Femme qui pleure and Les Femmes d'Alger.
It is war time. The armchair is a space that might seem open but is in fact an obstacle to freedom, like the throne of Innocent X by Velazquez. Dora is willing to react, with her elegant clothes and her big hat as for going out. She smiles.
And then there is the cat. It is very small. Perched on the back of the chair, it walks towards the woman who does not care at all about it. Black in the least contrasted part of the image, it is sneaky. Pablo and Dora did not like cats, these pets that scratch for a simple change of mood. They preferred dogs. For these reasons this tiny cat cannot be a personification of the artist. It is at best an unsolicited visitor, at worst the danger of the outside world.
The amalgamation between human and animal interested Picasso. In the same phase, he paints portraits of Dora with the muzzle of their Afghan hound. Here Dora's very long nails are in some way the claws of the cat.
Dora Maar au Chat was sold for $ 95M by Sotheby's on May 3, 2006, lot 14.
Grok thought :
Quote
Clown @ClownsTrenches Apr 27
Dora Maar au Chat – Pablo Picasso Price: $95.2 million (2006, Sotheby’s Auction)
- This X post highlights Pablo Picasso's 1941 cubist portrait "Dora Maar au Chat," depicting his muse with a cat in distorted, vibrant forms, reflecting her emotional turmoil during World War II.
- The artwork fetched $95.2 million at Sotheby's in 2006, a record for modern art then, bought anonymously after decades in private collection.
2
June 19, 1941
2020 SOLD for $ 29.6M by Christie's
Dora Maar au Chat was not dated to the month and day by the artist. It is regrettable because the sequence of events of the German occupation and of the Vichy regime generates an increasing anxiety. Picasso's dealer in Paris, Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler, is a Jew who had lost the French nationality by the decrees of July 1940. On June 13, 1941 the French government begins the deportation of the Jews. On July 1, as a precaution, Kahnweiler sells his gallery to the daughter of his wife, Louise Leiris.
On November 20, 2019, Heffel sold at lot 136 for $ 9.2M CAD a Tête later titled Femme au Chapeau. oil on canvas 61 x 38 cm dated in that bad June 13, 1941, Her expression, difficult to read within Picasso's multi-perspective style, seems rigid. The bleak white of the chair's structure dominates the composition. The article shared by CTV News includes a video with the participation of David Heffel.
The new configuration of Dora's face responds to the anxieties of Picasso, who has decidedly little respect for Dora. He begins a series of oils on canvas on which Dora's other usual attributes are maintained : the long black hair, the extravagant hat, the smile despite adversity.
He locks her up in an armchair which will symbolize freedom if one day she manages to escape and which anticipates the powerless Popes of Bacon. The nose, which takes its autonomy in this disaster, has been compared to a dog's muzzle or an elephant's trunk.
Another sign of the hard times is the ordinary style of the seat, making bringing the assumption that the comfortable armchair of the smiling Femme au chat had been painted before that dark phase of June 1941.
That series may be viewed as a counter-attack by Picasso against Matisse's Femme au chapeau of 1905, featuring Mme Matisse, which had been an excuse for an explosion of colors.
Femme dans un fauteuil, oil on canvas 130 x 97 cm painted on June 19, 1941, was sold for $ 29.6M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Christie's on October 6, 2020, lot 8.
June 19, 1941, just over a year into the Nazi Occupation of Paris, was a prolific day for Pablo Picasso. In addition to the Femme assise dans un fauteuil sold by Christie's for $ 19.6M, he also painted an oil on canvas of smaller size, 100 x 81 cm, featuring the same woman in the same armchair, seated in profile instead of full front. The smile disappeared and the hands are torn in the anxiety and restrictions of the Occupation. This Femme dans un fauteuil was sold for $ 17.2M by Christie's on May 13, 2021, lot 32 B.
On November 20, 2019, Heffel sold at lot 136 for $ 9.2M CAD a Tête later titled Femme au Chapeau. oil on canvas 61 x 38 cm dated in that bad June 13, 1941, Her expression, difficult to read within Picasso's multi-perspective style, seems rigid. The bleak white of the chair's structure dominates the composition. The article shared by CTV News includes a video with the participation of David Heffel.
The new configuration of Dora's face responds to the anxieties of Picasso, who has decidedly little respect for Dora. He begins a series of oils on canvas on which Dora's other usual attributes are maintained : the long black hair, the extravagant hat, the smile despite adversity.
He locks her up in an armchair which will symbolize freedom if one day she manages to escape and which anticipates the powerless Popes of Bacon. The nose, which takes its autonomy in this disaster, has been compared to a dog's muzzle or an elephant's trunk.
Another sign of the hard times is the ordinary style of the seat, making bringing the assumption that the comfortable armchair of the smiling Femme au chat had been painted before that dark phase of June 1941.
That series may be viewed as a counter-attack by Picasso against Matisse's Femme au chapeau of 1905, featuring Mme Matisse, which had been an excuse for an explosion of colors.
Femme dans un fauteuil, oil on canvas 130 x 97 cm painted on June 19, 1941, was sold for $ 29.6M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Christie's on October 6, 2020, lot 8.
June 19, 1941, just over a year into the Nazi Occupation of Paris, was a prolific day for Pablo Picasso. In addition to the Femme assise dans un fauteuil sold by Christie's for $ 19.6M, he also painted an oil on canvas of smaller size, 100 x 81 cm, featuring the same woman in the same armchair, seated in profile instead of full front. The smile disappeared and the hands are torn in the anxiety and restrictions of the Occupation. This Femme dans un fauteuil was sold for $ 17.2M by Christie's on May 13, 2021, lot 32 B.
3
October 23, 1941
2012 SOLD for $ 29M by Sotheby's
Painted on October 23, 1941 in a stylized geometry of head and body with saturated colors, Femme assise dans un fauteuil is clearly the same woman as Dora au chat although she is not named. The hat is exuberant.
This oil on canvas 92 x 73 cm was sold for $ 29M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Sotheby's on May 2, 2012, lot 4.
A few hours before the sale, the specialized press announced that the painting had been damaged some years ago, and that the conflict between the parties was still open. Sotheby's confirmed the story, indicating that the repair was made with the utmost professionalism. That story was narrated by Bloomberg.
In the fall of 1941 the series of the Femme assise dans un fauteuil loses the identification of the details of woman and seat, and the psychology disappears. An example painted on November 3 was sold for £ 9.4M by Sotheby's on March 25, 2021, lot 120.
This oil on canvas 92 x 73 cm was sold for $ 29M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Sotheby's on May 2, 2012, lot 4.
A few hours before the sale, the specialized press announced that the painting had been damaged some years ago, and that the conflict between the parties was still open. Sotheby's confirmed the story, indicating that the repair was made with the utmost professionalism. That story was narrated by Bloomberg.
In the fall of 1941 the series of the Femme assise dans un fauteuil loses the identification of the details of woman and seat, and the psychology disappears. An example painted on November 3 was sold for £ 9.4M by Sotheby's on March 25, 2021, lot 120.
4
1943 Buste de Femme au Chapeau à Fleurs
2025 SOLD for € 32M by Lucien (Paris)
Buste de Femme au Chapeau à Fleurs, featuring Dora, was painted by Picasso on July 11, 1943. This oil on canvas 81 x 60 cm is estimated € 8M for sale by Lucien (Paris) on October 24, 2025, lot 1.
Grok thoughts :
Immediate post sale
Quote
Drouot @Drouot
Présentée aux enchères par la maison de ventes Lucien Paris, La “femme au chapeau à fleurs (Dora Maar)” a été adjugée 32 millions d’euros ce vendredi 24 octobre à l’Hôtel Drouot au terme d’une longue bataille d’enchères entre 18 enchérisseurs internationaux.
Pre sale
Quote
Artnet @artnet Sep 20
#ArtnetNews: A Pablo Picasso portrait of his lover, artist Dora Maar, is going on public view for the first time and is headed to the auction block after eight decades in the collection of the same family that purchased it in 1944. Painted under German occupation in 1943 Paris,
Grok thoughts :
Immediate post sale
Quote
Drouot @Drouot
Présentée aux enchères par la maison de ventes Lucien Paris, La “femme au chapeau à fleurs (Dora Maar)” a été adjugée 32 millions d’euros ce vendredi 24 octobre à l’Hôtel Drouot au terme d’une longue bataille d’enchères entre 18 enchérisseurs internationaux.
- The X post announces the sale of Pablo Picasso's 1943 oil painting "Buste de femme au chapeau à fleurs (Dora Maar)" for a record 32 million euros at Drouot auction house, the highest price for any artwork in France in 2025.
- Painted during the Nazi occupation of Paris, the cubist portrait of Picasso's muse Dora Maar features her in a vibrant floral hat and had remained in private hands, unseen publicly for over 80 years until this rediscovery.
- The intense bidding war among 18 international participants, culminating in a foreign buyer's victory, underscores the global appetite for rare wartime Picassos, with the piece's provenance enhancing its value amid a competitive art market.
Pre sale
Quote
Artnet @artnet Sep 20
#ArtnetNews: A Pablo Picasso portrait of his lover, artist Dora Maar, is going on public view for the first time and is headed to the auction block after eight decades in the collection of the same family that purchased it in 1944. Painted under German occupation in 1943 Paris,
- Painted in 1943 amid Nazi-occupied Paris, Picasso's Buste de femme au chapeau à fleurs (Dora Maar) captures his muse in a vibrant Cubist style, symbolizing personal turmoil and wartime grief as their abusive relationship ended that year.
- Acquired by a private family in 1944 shortly after completion, the portrait remained unseen publicly for 80 years, known only via a studio photo in Picasso's catalogue raisonné, until its debut view ahead of auction.
- Estimated at €8 million ($9.4 million), it headlines Lucien Paris's October 24 sale at Hôtel Drouot, highlighting Dora Maar's overlooked Surrealist legacy, including her Guernica photography and recent exhibitions reclaiming her artistic influence.
5
1948 Femme au Chignon dans un Fauteuil
2015 SOLD for $ 30M by Sotheby's
Once again in the search of another love partner and muse, Picasso, aged 61, met Françoise Gilot, aged 21, in 1943. They moved to Antibes in 1946. A son, Claude, was born in 1947.
In the opposite of his unfair representation of Dora in distress, Françoise was the Femme fleur worthy of his admiration. He attributed to her a saturated emerald green color which is also a symbol of rebirth after the war.
In the summer of 1948 Picasso, who was since 1944 a member of the Parti Communiste Français, attended a peace congress in Wroclaw while Françoise was just becoming pregnant again. She went angry for that abandonment. Picasso, who desired to maintain peace in their couple, gifted to her a Polish peasant coat brightly embroidered in red, blue and yellow.
The next period was happy. Picasso, who had been busy in ceramics and lithography, resumed painting by a small series of portraits of Françoise seated in an armchair, wearing the Polish garment. Every muse of Picasso is different from her predecessors. The strong headed Françoise, a skilled artist in her own right, is proud with a gentle smile.
Femme au chignon dans un fauteuil, oil on canvas 92 x 73 cm painted on November 1, 1948, was
sold for $ 30M from a lower estimate of $ 12M by Sotheby's on May 5, 2015, lot 21. It had been acquired in 1956 the Warsaw born Samuel Goldwyn, arguably impressed by the unexpected Polish element in Picasso's composition.
Within the series of portraits of the pregnant Françoise in an armchair with the Polish coat, Femme dans un fauteuil was begun and left unfinished on October 30, 1948, and completed on Christmas day. Picasso did not part of it. This oil on canvas 92 x 73 cm was sold for HK $ 93M by Sotheby's on April 5, 2023, lot 1032. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
In the opposite of his unfair representation of Dora in distress, Françoise was the Femme fleur worthy of his admiration. He attributed to her a saturated emerald green color which is also a symbol of rebirth after the war.
In the summer of 1948 Picasso, who was since 1944 a member of the Parti Communiste Français, attended a peace congress in Wroclaw while Françoise was just becoming pregnant again. She went angry for that abandonment. Picasso, who desired to maintain peace in their couple, gifted to her a Polish peasant coat brightly embroidered in red, blue and yellow.
The next period was happy. Picasso, who had been busy in ceramics and lithography, resumed painting by a small series of portraits of Françoise seated in an armchair, wearing the Polish garment. Every muse of Picasso is different from her predecessors. The strong headed Françoise, a skilled artist in her own right, is proud with a gentle smile.
Femme au chignon dans un fauteuil, oil on canvas 92 x 73 cm painted on November 1, 1948, was
sold for $ 30M from a lower estimate of $ 12M by Sotheby's on May 5, 2015, lot 21. It had been acquired in 1956 the Warsaw born Samuel Goldwyn, arguably impressed by the unexpected Polish element in Picasso's composition.
Within the series of portraits of the pregnant Françoise in an armchair with the Polish coat, Femme dans un fauteuil was begun and left unfinished on October 30, 1948, and completed on Christmas day. Picasso did not part of it. This oil on canvas 92 x 73 cm was sold for HK $ 93M by Sotheby's on April 5, 2023, lot 1032. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
masterpiece
1943 Le Marin
Wynn collection
Everything goes wrong for Picasso in the fall of 1943 in Paris under the German Occupation. Guernica's message against totalitarianisms was clear and he will never deny it. His choice to stay in Paris is daring. In September an administrative letter requests him to prepare for the Service du Travail Obligatoire which is a deportation in Germany.
During that year Picasso is very busy with sculpture. When Brassaï enters his studio to take pictures, he is amazed by a large Tête de Mort. The skull looks almost alive with its empty orbits and its flattened nose. This theme expresses the sinister mood of the artist. Maybe even it is a self-portrait.
Le Marin, oil on canvas 129 x 81 cm dated October 28, 1943, was listed as lot 8A by Christie's on May 15, 2018 with an estimate in the region of $ 70M.
Once past the ambitions of his youth, Picasso generally left doubt about the identity of his characters. However he soon acknowledged that this sailor is a self-portrait.
The larger than life man in mid-length is dressed in a sailor's jersey, which is not a mere description of his signature dress habits : Pablo stuck in Paris is yearning for his beloved Mediterranean sea that he may never see again. All his attitude is sad, reinforced by the darkness around the eyes.
One year later Paris has just been liberated. Le Marin, a great symbol of wartime art, is highlighted in the Salon d'Automne. Belonging to the Ganz collection, it was sold for $ 8M by Christie's on November 10, 1997. In that sale the O version of Les Femmes d'Alger was sold for $ 32M including premium.
Le Marin was withdrawn by Christie's after a damage during the preparation of the sale. Here is the statement issued by the auction house.
Grok thought :
Quote
Artnet @artnet May 30, 2020
A paint roller tore a $20 million hole in a Picasso painting that casino mogul Steve Wynn planned to sell at Christie's. Now, the insurance company is suing the contractor to pay for it: https://bit.ly/36zdOJP
During that year Picasso is very busy with sculpture. When Brassaï enters his studio to take pictures, he is amazed by a large Tête de Mort. The skull looks almost alive with its empty orbits and its flattened nose. This theme expresses the sinister mood of the artist. Maybe even it is a self-portrait.
Le Marin, oil on canvas 129 x 81 cm dated October 28, 1943, was listed as lot 8A by Christie's on May 15, 2018 with an estimate in the region of $ 70M.
Once past the ambitions of his youth, Picasso generally left doubt about the identity of his characters. However he soon acknowledged that this sailor is a self-portrait.
The larger than life man in mid-length is dressed in a sailor's jersey, which is not a mere description of his signature dress habits : Pablo stuck in Paris is yearning for his beloved Mediterranean sea that he may never see again. All his attitude is sad, reinforced by the darkness around the eyes.
One year later Paris has just been liberated. Le Marin, a great symbol of wartime art, is highlighted in the Salon d'Automne. Belonging to the Ganz collection, it was sold for $ 8M by Christie's on November 10, 1997. In that sale the O version of Les Femmes d'Alger was sold for $ 32M including premium.
Le Marin was withdrawn by Christie's after a damage during the preparation of the sale. Here is the statement issued by the auction house.
Grok thought :
Quote
Artnet @artnet May 30, 2020
A paint roller tore a $20 million hole in a Picasso painting that casino mogul Steve Wynn planned to sell at Christie's. Now, the insurance company is suing the contractor to pay for it: https://bit.ly/36zdOJP
- In 2018, during renovations at Steve Wynn's Las Vegas office, an unsecured paint roller from contractor T.F. Nugent fell and tore a 6-inch hole in Picasso's 1943 self-portrait "Le Marin," valued at $20 million and slated for Christie's auction.
- Steadfast Insurance Co. covered $18.4 million in repairs for Wynn, prompting a 2020 lawsuit against the contractor to recover costs, highlighting risks in handling high-value art during construction.
- This marks Wynn's second Picasso mishap, following his 2006 elbow puncture of "Le Rêve"—a $139 million sale that became a repaired asset later listed for $110 million—underscoring the vulnerabilities of billionaire art collections.
1954 Femme Accroupie by Picasso
2017 SOLD for $ 37M by Christie's
Françoise left in September 1953 with the two children, Claude and Paloma. A distraught Picasso is looking for a new muse in Vallauris. In April 1954 he sees Sylvette with her long blonde ponytail. The shy 19 year old agrees to meet the artist but fears his flirtation.
Pablo already knew the brunette Jacqueline who has a job at Madoura. She accepts to live with him. In June Pablo paints his first portraits of Jacqueline. She is 28 years old and Picasso 45 more. They will not leave each other and will marry in Vallauris in 1961.
A quarter century before, Picasso sorted the blonde Marie-Thérèse from the the street for her physical features thet could help him in his career. It is not by chance that his new muse Jacqueline looks like one of the Femmes d'Alger by Delacroix with her black hair, dark eyes and straight nose.
On October 8, 1954 Pablo paints three oils on canvas in a single size, 146 x 114 cm. Jacqueline in long dress is crouched on the floor in an interior, hands clasped around her raised knees.
In this new series painted shortly before the death of Matisse, Pablo wants to demonstrate his skill as a colorist. It is sunny in Vallauris and the blue sky behind the window provides a bright atmosphere. Realism and proportions are not considered : the artist uses his signature style of simultaneous vision of two profile faces of the sitter and the limbs are too frail. The lozenges and half lozenges of the skirt provide a geometric element.
One of these paintings was sold for $ 37M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Christie's on November 13, 2017, lot 39 A. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house.
Another opus, kept at the Museo Picasso Malaga, is similar, with less bold face lines and a less composed background. The third one was sold for £ 7.4M by Sotheby's on June 21, 2017, lot 55.
Pablo already knew the brunette Jacqueline who has a job at Madoura. She accepts to live with him. In June Pablo paints his first portraits of Jacqueline. She is 28 years old and Picasso 45 more. They will not leave each other and will marry in Vallauris in 1961.
A quarter century before, Picasso sorted the blonde Marie-Thérèse from the the street for her physical features thet could help him in his career. It is not by chance that his new muse Jacqueline looks like one of the Femmes d'Alger by Delacroix with her black hair, dark eyes and straight nose.
On October 8, 1954 Pablo paints three oils on canvas in a single size, 146 x 114 cm. Jacqueline in long dress is crouched on the floor in an interior, hands clasped around her raised knees.
In this new series painted shortly before the death of Matisse, Pablo wants to demonstrate his skill as a colorist. It is sunny in Vallauris and the blue sky behind the window provides a bright atmosphere. Realism and proportions are not considered : the artist uses his signature style of simultaneous vision of two profile faces of the sitter and the limbs are too frail. The lozenges and half lozenges of the skirt provide a geometric element.
One of these paintings was sold for $ 37M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Christie's on November 13, 2017, lot 39 A. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house.
Another opus, kept at the Museo Picasso Malaga, is similar, with less bold face lines and a less composed background. The third one was sold for £ 7.4M by Sotheby's on June 21, 2017, lot 55.
1955 Les Femmes d'Alger
Intro
The Femmes d'Alger by Delacroix, by inspiring Picasso, had a role in the genesis of modern painting. Executed in Paris in 1907, the painting Les Demoiselles d'Avignon shows a group of women. Unlike in Delacroix, they are naked. They are not in the hot atmosphere of a harem but their offering is venal.
It is difficult to recognize the influence of Delacroix upon the Demoiselles because the tribal art that inspired the deconstruction of forms is the real origin of Cubism. Other influences have also been identified for this painting which is one of the most important breakthroughs of Western art : el Greco, Cézanne, Gauguin.
Matisse's death in November 1954 deprives Picasso of a friend with whom he liked to compare his ideas about the essentials of art. Matisse's Odalisques were famous. Picasso had been little interested so far by Orientalism but he was somehow jealous of his late friend.
To overcome Matisse in the history of art, Picasso resuscitates the Femmes d'Alger in a series of fifteen paintings numbered A to O in the chronological order of their execution. This project is unique in the history of art as the artist carefully imitated several styles used by himself starting from his invention of Cubism.
Picasso leaves no doubt about his real intention by acknowledging not without humor that he got the legacy of Matisse's odalisques. His new muse, Jacqueline, resembles one of the odalisques by Delacroix. Matisse's Nu bleu is another influence.
It is difficult to recognize the influence of Delacroix upon the Demoiselles because the tribal art that inspired the deconstruction of forms is the real origin of Cubism. Other influences have also been identified for this painting which is one of the most important breakthroughs of Western art : el Greco, Cézanne, Gauguin.
Matisse's death in November 1954 deprives Picasso of a friend with whom he liked to compare his ideas about the essentials of art. Matisse's Odalisques were famous. Picasso had been little interested so far by Orientalism but he was somehow jealous of his late friend.
To overcome Matisse in the history of art, Picasso resuscitates the Femmes d'Alger in a series of fifteen paintings numbered A to O in the chronological order of their execution. This project is unique in the history of art as the artist carefully imitated several styles used by himself starting from his invention of Cubism.
Picasso leaves no doubt about his real intention by acknowledging not without humor that he got the legacy of Matisse's odalisques. His new muse, Jacqueline, resembles one of the odalisques by Delacroix. Matisse's Nu bleu is another influence.
Les Femmes d'Alger by Picasso. Compare Version O, to be taken as the reference, with preparatory versions F, J and L. Discuss the artist's intention to build a synthesis of his Cubist styles.
Overview of the Series
Pablo Picasso's Les Femmes d'Alger series, created between December 1954 and February 1955, consists of 15 oil paintings (versions A through O) inspired by Eugène Delacroix's 1834 painting The Women of Algiers in Their Apartment. The works also serve as an homage to Henri Matisse, who had recently died, incorporating elements of his odalisques and colorful cut-outs. Through these variations, Picasso explored themes of female figures in a harem setting, progressively distorting forms, space, and color to revisit and synthesize his Cubist innovations from earlier in his career.
Version O: The Reference
Version O, completed on February 14, 1955, measures 114 × 146.4 cm and represents the culmination of the series. It depicts four women in a compressed, chaotic interior: a stately seated figure on the left (often interpreted as resembling Picasso's partner Jacqueline Roque, with a long neck and elegant face), a reclining odalisque at the bottom, a standing servant in the background, and another figure integrated into the fractured space. The composition features intensely vibrant colors—brash reds, blues, and yellows—in flat patches, distorted perspectives, and interlocking geometric planes that create a sense of depthless turmoil. Fractured Cubist forms dominate, with bodies twisted to show multiple viewpoints simultaneously, blending analytic Cubism's sharp dissections with synthetic Cubism's bold, collage-like assembly. This version synthesizes the series' experiments into a dynamic whole, evoking a "maelstrom of colour and shattered and flattened perspectives." It stands as an "epic master class on the ways of painting, art history, color, structure, and form."
Comparison with Preparatory Versions
Version F
Painted on January 17, 1955, Version F (dimensions not consistently specified, but medium-sized like early works in the series) marks a midpoint in the exploratory phase. It features only three figures, omitting the fourth seen in Delacroix's original and later Picasso versions. The rightmost figure dominates the foreground, spreading expansively with a downward-pointing breast, echoing Matisse's Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra) from 1907 (though without the blue hue seen in the similar Version E). The composition is looser and rougher than O, with less resolved spatial dynamics and a more tentative abstraction—figures are fragmented but not as interlocked or chaotic. Colors are vibrant but not as violently clashing, and the overall feel is more improvisational, focusing on anatomical distortions rather than a packed, synthesized scene. Compared to O, F is simpler and less ambitious, serving as a building block by experimenting with figure dominance and Matissean influences before the fuller integration in the final version.
Version J
Version J, likely painted in late January 1955 (dimensions approximately 45 × 57.5 inches), emphasizes distortion in a multi-figure composition similar to O but with a more focused ambiguity. The reclining woman in the foreground has an upper body divided horizontally: the lower half and head suggest she lies on her stomach, while the upper breast, navel, and leg position indicate a back-down pose, creating impossible contortions that present front and back views at once. Colors are present but subdued compared to O's intensity, with sharper Cubist edges and a sense of spatial compression. Unlike O's harmonious synthesis, J feels more analytical and experimental, highlighting anatomical puzzles as a preparatory step toward the final's fluid multiplicity. It bridges early looseness (like F) and later monumentality (like L), advancing the series' progression toward complex viewpoints.
Version L
Completed on February 9, 1955, Version L (130 × 97 cm) is a large-format, monochrome (grisaille) portrait isolating the seated woman from the left of Delacroix's composition. She appears pyramid-like, enthroned with a hookah, evoking a sphinx or the ancient goddess Astarte—majestic, inscrutable, and embodying "sexually powerful and fertile womanhood." The style recalls Picasso's early analytic Cubism with sharp, grey-toned edges and geometric fragmentation, but without the color or multi-figure chaos of O. Compared to the reference, L is starkly simplified: one figure versus four, tonal restraint versus vibrant patches, and a static, intimidating presence versus dynamic energy. It acts as a preparatory focus on individual power, which O integrates into a broader ensemble, softening the severity with color and movement.
In summary, Versions F, J, and L are preparatory in their increasing complexity—F's loose three-figure exploration, J's ambiguous distortions, and L's monumental isolation—building toward O's fuller, more resolved synthesis. Early versions like F prioritize improvisation and homage to Matisse, while later ones like J and L deepen Cubist dissections, culminating in O's balanced fusion.
Picasso's Intention: Synthesizing Cubist Styles
Picasso's series reflects a deliberate effort to revisit and synthesize his Cubist styles in his later years, blending analytic Cubism's deconstructive, monochromatic fragmentation (evident in L's sharp greys and geometric forms) with synthetic Cubism's colorful, collage-inspired assembly (seen in O's flat planes and vibrant patches). At age 73, he used Delacroix's composition as a framework for "research" into painting's possibilities, appropriating historical motifs while infusing them with personal obsessions like distorted anatomy and multiple viewpoints. The progression from preparatory versions' tentative experiments to O's "brilliant syntheses" demonstrates his intent to merge early Cubist rigor with Matissean color and later abstraction, creating a "vital discussion on the very possibilities of painting." This was not just homage but a reclamation, as Picasso stated Matisse "left his odalisques to me as a legacy," transforming Orientalist themes into a modern Cubist dialogue. The result in O is a milestone that encapsulates Cubism's evolution, proving its enduring vitality.
Delacroix's Original: The Women of Algiers in Their Apartment
Eugène Delacroix's The Women of Algiers in Their Apartment (1834, oil on canvas, 180 × 229 cm, Louvre, Paris) is a quintessential Romantic and Orientalist work, inspired by the artist's 1832 trip to Morocco and Algeria. It depicts three richly dressed women lounging in a luxurious harem interior, attended by a Black servant woman entering from the right with a tray or vessel. The scene is bathed in warm, diffused light filtering through a window, creating a sense of exotic intimacy and mystery. Colors are opulent—deep reds, golds, and blues—with meticulous details in textiles, jewelry, and architectural elements like the tiled floor and arched niches. The figures are rendered realistically, with serene expressions and naturalistic poses, evoking a voyeuristic glimpse into a forbidden, sensual world. Delacroix painted a second version in 1849 (now in Montpellier), which shifts the composition slightly by moving the figures forward and altering details, but maintains the overall Romantic allure.
Comparison of Picasso's Version O to Delacroix's Original
Picasso's Version O (1955) radically reinterprets Delacroix's composition through a Cubist lens, transforming the serene, narrative scene into a fragmented, dynamic explosion of form and color. While Delacroix presents a cohesive, illusionistic space with depth and atmosphere, Picasso flattens the interior into interlocking geometric planes, eliminating realistic perspective for multiple simultaneous viewpoints—echoing his Analytic and Synthetic Cubist phases. The four figures (three women and a servant) are distorted: the seated woman on the left becomes elongated and regal (resembling Jacqueline Roque), the reclining odalisque at the bottom twists impossibly, the standing servant merges into the background, and another figure blends into the chaos. Unlike Delacroix's clothed, modest women, Picasso's are nude or semi-nude, emphasizing eroticism and anatomical abstraction over cultural specificity—breasts, limbs, and faces are dissected and reassembled. Colors shift from Delacroix's warm, harmonious palette to brash, clashing primaries (reds, blues, yellows) in flat patches, evoking Matisse's influence rather than Orientalist exoticism. Details like the hookah, curtains, and furnishings are simplified or stylized, losing narrative detail for formal experimentation. Overall, Version O strips away Delacroix's Romantic voyeurism, replacing it with a modern, abstract dialogue on perception and form, while paying homage to the original as a structural framework.
Comparison of Preparatory Versions F, J, and L to Delacroix's OriginalThe preparatory versions F, J, and L represent Picasso's incremental departures from Delacroix's original, building toward the synthesis in O. Each experiments with elements of the harem scene but progressively abstracts them through Cubism.
Picasso's Intentions in Relation to the Original
Picasso's series uses Delacroix's painting as a "template" to synthesize his Cubist styles, blending Analytic deconstruction (sharp fragments in L and J) with Synthetic assembly (bold colors and planes in F and O). Triggered by Matisse's death in 1954, it serves as a dual homage—reclaiming Matisse's odalisques while engaging Delacroix's Orientalism in a post-colonial context (coinciding with the Algerian War's outbreak). By distorting the original's exoticism into modern abstraction, Picasso explores painting's possibilities, moving from preparatory experiments to O's "brilliant synthesis," bracketing colonialism's era from Delacroix's imperial gaze to his own fragmented modernity.
Explore Matisse's odalisque influence
Henri Matisse's Odalisques: An Overview
Henri Matisse (1869–1954), a leading figure in Fauvism and modern art, produced a significant body of work featuring odalisques—reclining or seated female figures often depicted in exotic, Orientalist harem settings. These paintings, created primarily in the 1920s during his time in Nice, France, drew from North African influences encountered during trips to Morocco in 1912–1913. Matisse's odalisques embody sensuality, vibrant color, and decorative patterns, with models like Henriette Darricarrère or Antoinette Arnoud posed in elaborate costumes, surrounded by textiles, screens, and mirrors that flatten space and emphasize surface beauty. Key themes include eroticism, luxury, and escapism, blending Western modernism with imagined Eastern motifs. Unlike the more narrative Orientalism of 19th-century artists like Delacroix, Matisse focused on formal elements: bold, harmonious colors; fluid lines; and a harmonious integration of figure and background, prefiguring his later paper cut-outs.
Notable examples include Odalisque with Raised Arms (1923), where a seated woman with arms aloft creates a rhythmic pose against patterned fabrics; Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra) (1907), a controversial early work with a reclining figure in blue tones, blending sculpture-like form with ambiguous racial features; and Odalisque in Red Trousers (c. 1924–1925), showcasing vibrant reds and relaxed sensuality. These works reflect Matisse's pursuit of "an art of balance, of purity and serenity," using color as an emotional force rather than realistic depiction.
Picasso's Relationship with Matisse
Picasso and Matisse shared a complex rivalry-turned-friendship, marked by mutual respect and artistic dialogue. Meeting in 1906 through Gertrude Stein, they challenged each other: Matisse's Fauvist color influenced Picasso's early experiments, while Picasso's Cubism pushed Matisse toward abstraction. By the 1950s, their bond deepened, with Picasso viewing Matisse as his primary contemporary equal. Matisse's death on November 3, 1954, profoundly affected Picasso, who began Les Femmes d'Alger just weeks later as a mourning ritual and inheritance claim. Picasso famously quipped, "When Matisse died, he left his odalisques to me as a legacy," positioning himself as the heir to Matisse's sensual, colorful harem themes while reinterpreting them through Cubism.
Influence on Picasso's Les Femmes d'Alger Series
Matisse's odalisques provided Picasso with a visual vocabulary of languid poses, vibrant palettes, and flattened interiors, which he fused with Delacroix's composition and his own Cubist distortions. The series (1954–1955) transforms Matisse's serene, decorative sensuality into fragmented, dynamic energy, creating a "dialogue" across art history. Picasso appropriated Matisse's motifs—reclining nudes, raised arms, and exotic accoutrements—while intensifying color clashes and spatial ambiguity. This homage coincided with the Algerian War's outbreak, adding layers of postcolonial tension, though Picasso's focus remained artistic rather than political. Overall, Matisse's influence softened Picasso's late Cubism with Fauvist vibrancy, aiding his synthesis of analytic (sharp fragments) and synthetic (bold assemblages) styles into a colorful, multifaceted whole.
Specific Influences in Version O (Reference)
Version O epitomizes Matisse's impact, with its "maelstrom of colour" echoing Matisse's harmonious yet bold palettes. The reclining odalisque at the bottom—faceless, twisted to show multiple views—directly references Matisse's Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra) in pose and ambiguity, blending front and back in erotic abandon. The cross-legged figure with raised arms nods to Odalisque with Raised Arms, integrated into a chaotic ensemble. Matisse's decorative patterns appear in stylized textiles and screens, but Picasso shatters them Cubistically, synthesizing Matissean sensuality with his own geometric turmoil for a "visual summation" of art history.
Influences in Preparatory Versions
Picasso's intention in the series was to revisit his Cubist roots—analytic dissection and synthetic collage—while incorporating Matisse's legacy for a late-career renewal. Matisse's odalisques injected color and sensuality, allowing Picasso to merge Fauvist expressiveness with Cubist multiplicity. Preparatory versions like F, J, and L experiment with these elements incrementally: F's loose Matissean poses, J's ambiguous distortions, and L's stark forms culminate in O's "brilliant synthesis," where fragmented planes vibrate with Matissean hues. This fusion not only mourns Matisse but reaffirms Cubism's vitality, creating a "Herculean effort" to transcend grief through artistic dialogue.
Overview of the Series
Pablo Picasso's Les Femmes d'Alger series, created between December 1954 and February 1955, consists of 15 oil paintings (versions A through O) inspired by Eugène Delacroix's 1834 painting The Women of Algiers in Their Apartment. The works also serve as an homage to Henri Matisse, who had recently died, incorporating elements of his odalisques and colorful cut-outs. Through these variations, Picasso explored themes of female figures in a harem setting, progressively distorting forms, space, and color to revisit and synthesize his Cubist innovations from earlier in his career.
Version O: The Reference
Version O, completed on February 14, 1955, measures 114 × 146.4 cm and represents the culmination of the series. It depicts four women in a compressed, chaotic interior: a stately seated figure on the left (often interpreted as resembling Picasso's partner Jacqueline Roque, with a long neck and elegant face), a reclining odalisque at the bottom, a standing servant in the background, and another figure integrated into the fractured space. The composition features intensely vibrant colors—brash reds, blues, and yellows—in flat patches, distorted perspectives, and interlocking geometric planes that create a sense of depthless turmoil. Fractured Cubist forms dominate, with bodies twisted to show multiple viewpoints simultaneously, blending analytic Cubism's sharp dissections with synthetic Cubism's bold, collage-like assembly. This version synthesizes the series' experiments into a dynamic whole, evoking a "maelstrom of colour and shattered and flattened perspectives." It stands as an "epic master class on the ways of painting, art history, color, structure, and form."
Comparison with Preparatory Versions
Version F
Painted on January 17, 1955, Version F (dimensions not consistently specified, but medium-sized like early works in the series) marks a midpoint in the exploratory phase. It features only three figures, omitting the fourth seen in Delacroix's original and later Picasso versions. The rightmost figure dominates the foreground, spreading expansively with a downward-pointing breast, echoing Matisse's Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra) from 1907 (though without the blue hue seen in the similar Version E). The composition is looser and rougher than O, with less resolved spatial dynamics and a more tentative abstraction—figures are fragmented but not as interlocked or chaotic. Colors are vibrant but not as violently clashing, and the overall feel is more improvisational, focusing on anatomical distortions rather than a packed, synthesized scene. Compared to O, F is simpler and less ambitious, serving as a building block by experimenting with figure dominance and Matissean influences before the fuller integration in the final version.
Version J
Version J, likely painted in late January 1955 (dimensions approximately 45 × 57.5 inches), emphasizes distortion in a multi-figure composition similar to O but with a more focused ambiguity. The reclining woman in the foreground has an upper body divided horizontally: the lower half and head suggest she lies on her stomach, while the upper breast, navel, and leg position indicate a back-down pose, creating impossible contortions that present front and back views at once. Colors are present but subdued compared to O's intensity, with sharper Cubist edges and a sense of spatial compression. Unlike O's harmonious synthesis, J feels more analytical and experimental, highlighting anatomical puzzles as a preparatory step toward the final's fluid multiplicity. It bridges early looseness (like F) and later monumentality (like L), advancing the series' progression toward complex viewpoints.
Version L
Completed on February 9, 1955, Version L (130 × 97 cm) is a large-format, monochrome (grisaille) portrait isolating the seated woman from the left of Delacroix's composition. She appears pyramid-like, enthroned with a hookah, evoking a sphinx or the ancient goddess Astarte—majestic, inscrutable, and embodying "sexually powerful and fertile womanhood." The style recalls Picasso's early analytic Cubism with sharp, grey-toned edges and geometric fragmentation, but without the color or multi-figure chaos of O. Compared to the reference, L is starkly simplified: one figure versus four, tonal restraint versus vibrant patches, and a static, intimidating presence versus dynamic energy. It acts as a preparatory focus on individual power, which O integrates into a broader ensemble, softening the severity with color and movement.
In summary, Versions F, J, and L are preparatory in their increasing complexity—F's loose three-figure exploration, J's ambiguous distortions, and L's monumental isolation—building toward O's fuller, more resolved synthesis. Early versions like F prioritize improvisation and homage to Matisse, while later ones like J and L deepen Cubist dissections, culminating in O's balanced fusion.
Picasso's Intention: Synthesizing Cubist Styles
Picasso's series reflects a deliberate effort to revisit and synthesize his Cubist styles in his later years, blending analytic Cubism's deconstructive, monochromatic fragmentation (evident in L's sharp greys and geometric forms) with synthetic Cubism's colorful, collage-inspired assembly (seen in O's flat planes and vibrant patches). At age 73, he used Delacroix's composition as a framework for "research" into painting's possibilities, appropriating historical motifs while infusing them with personal obsessions like distorted anatomy and multiple viewpoints. The progression from preparatory versions' tentative experiments to O's "brilliant syntheses" demonstrates his intent to merge early Cubist rigor with Matissean color and later abstraction, creating a "vital discussion on the very possibilities of painting." This was not just homage but a reclamation, as Picasso stated Matisse "left his odalisques to me as a legacy," transforming Orientalist themes into a modern Cubist dialogue. The result in O is a milestone that encapsulates Cubism's evolution, proving its enduring vitality.
Delacroix's Original: The Women of Algiers in Their Apartment
Eugène Delacroix's The Women of Algiers in Their Apartment (1834, oil on canvas, 180 × 229 cm, Louvre, Paris) is a quintessential Romantic and Orientalist work, inspired by the artist's 1832 trip to Morocco and Algeria. It depicts three richly dressed women lounging in a luxurious harem interior, attended by a Black servant woman entering from the right with a tray or vessel. The scene is bathed in warm, diffused light filtering through a window, creating a sense of exotic intimacy and mystery. Colors are opulent—deep reds, golds, and blues—with meticulous details in textiles, jewelry, and architectural elements like the tiled floor and arched niches. The figures are rendered realistically, with serene expressions and naturalistic poses, evoking a voyeuristic glimpse into a forbidden, sensual world. Delacroix painted a second version in 1849 (now in Montpellier), which shifts the composition slightly by moving the figures forward and altering details, but maintains the overall Romantic allure.
Comparison of Picasso's Version O to Delacroix's Original
Picasso's Version O (1955) radically reinterprets Delacroix's composition through a Cubist lens, transforming the serene, narrative scene into a fragmented, dynamic explosion of form and color. While Delacroix presents a cohesive, illusionistic space with depth and atmosphere, Picasso flattens the interior into interlocking geometric planes, eliminating realistic perspective for multiple simultaneous viewpoints—echoing his Analytic and Synthetic Cubist phases. The four figures (three women and a servant) are distorted: the seated woman on the left becomes elongated and regal (resembling Jacqueline Roque), the reclining odalisque at the bottom twists impossibly, the standing servant merges into the background, and another figure blends into the chaos. Unlike Delacroix's clothed, modest women, Picasso's are nude or semi-nude, emphasizing eroticism and anatomical abstraction over cultural specificity—breasts, limbs, and faces are dissected and reassembled. Colors shift from Delacroix's warm, harmonious palette to brash, clashing primaries (reds, blues, yellows) in flat patches, evoking Matisse's influence rather than Orientalist exoticism. Details like the hookah, curtains, and furnishings are simplified or stylized, losing narrative detail for formal experimentation. Overall, Version O strips away Delacroix's Romantic voyeurism, replacing it with a modern, abstract dialogue on perception and form, while paying homage to the original as a structural framework.
Comparison of Preparatory Versions F, J, and L to Delacroix's OriginalThe preparatory versions F, J, and L represent Picasso's incremental departures from Delacroix's original, building toward the synthesis in O. Each experiments with elements of the harem scene but progressively abstracts them through Cubism.
- Version F (January 17, 1955): This version simplifies Delacroix's composition to three figures, omitting the fourth woman, much like Picasso's early sketches and initial paintings (A and B) in the series. The dominant rightmost figure sprawls expansively with distorted anatomy (e.g., a downward-pointing breast), echoing Matisse more than Delacroix's poised women. Space is looser and less detailed than Delacroix's intricate interior, with vibrant but unresolved colors and tentative fragmentation—focusing on pose experimentation rather than the original's atmospheric depth or cultural attire.
- Version J (late January 1955): Closer to Delacroix in including multiple figures, but with heightened ambiguity. The reclining foreground woman combines front and back views in an impossible contortion, a Cubist twist absent in Delacroix's naturalistic poses. Colors are subdued compared to O, and edges sharper, emphasizing analytical dissection over Romantic harmony. It diverges by compressing space and prioritizing anatomical puzzles, moving away from Delacroix's serene grouping toward O's chaotic integration.
- Version L (February 9, 1955): This monochrome grisaille isolates the seated woman from Delacroix's left, rendering her as a monumental, pyramid-like figure with a hookah, evoking ancient statuary rather than a harem inhabitant. Lacking color and companions, it strips Delacroix's opulent scene to stark geometric fragmentation, recalling Picasso's early Analytic Cubism. The focus on individual power and inscrutability contrasts Delacroix's ensemble narrative, serving as a preparatory study for O's ensemble while highlighting severity over sensuality.
Picasso's Intentions in Relation to the Original
Picasso's series uses Delacroix's painting as a "template" to synthesize his Cubist styles, blending Analytic deconstruction (sharp fragments in L and J) with Synthetic assembly (bold colors and planes in F and O). Triggered by Matisse's death in 1954, it serves as a dual homage—reclaiming Matisse's odalisques while engaging Delacroix's Orientalism in a post-colonial context (coinciding with the Algerian War's outbreak). By distorting the original's exoticism into modern abstraction, Picasso explores painting's possibilities, moving from preparatory experiments to O's "brilliant synthesis," bracketing colonialism's era from Delacroix's imperial gaze to his own fragmented modernity.
Explore Matisse's odalisque influence
Henri Matisse's Odalisques: An Overview
Henri Matisse (1869–1954), a leading figure in Fauvism and modern art, produced a significant body of work featuring odalisques—reclining or seated female figures often depicted in exotic, Orientalist harem settings. These paintings, created primarily in the 1920s during his time in Nice, France, drew from North African influences encountered during trips to Morocco in 1912–1913. Matisse's odalisques embody sensuality, vibrant color, and decorative patterns, with models like Henriette Darricarrère or Antoinette Arnoud posed in elaborate costumes, surrounded by textiles, screens, and mirrors that flatten space and emphasize surface beauty. Key themes include eroticism, luxury, and escapism, blending Western modernism with imagined Eastern motifs. Unlike the more narrative Orientalism of 19th-century artists like Delacroix, Matisse focused on formal elements: bold, harmonious colors; fluid lines; and a harmonious integration of figure and background, prefiguring his later paper cut-outs.
Notable examples include Odalisque with Raised Arms (1923), where a seated woman with arms aloft creates a rhythmic pose against patterned fabrics; Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra) (1907), a controversial early work with a reclining figure in blue tones, blending sculpture-like form with ambiguous racial features; and Odalisque in Red Trousers (c. 1924–1925), showcasing vibrant reds and relaxed sensuality. These works reflect Matisse's pursuit of "an art of balance, of purity and serenity," using color as an emotional force rather than realistic depiction.
Picasso's Relationship with Matisse
Picasso and Matisse shared a complex rivalry-turned-friendship, marked by mutual respect and artistic dialogue. Meeting in 1906 through Gertrude Stein, they challenged each other: Matisse's Fauvist color influenced Picasso's early experiments, while Picasso's Cubism pushed Matisse toward abstraction. By the 1950s, their bond deepened, with Picasso viewing Matisse as his primary contemporary equal. Matisse's death on November 3, 1954, profoundly affected Picasso, who began Les Femmes d'Alger just weeks later as a mourning ritual and inheritance claim. Picasso famously quipped, "When Matisse died, he left his odalisques to me as a legacy," positioning himself as the heir to Matisse's sensual, colorful harem themes while reinterpreting them through Cubism.
Influence on Picasso's Les Femmes d'Alger Series
Matisse's odalisques provided Picasso with a visual vocabulary of languid poses, vibrant palettes, and flattened interiors, which he fused with Delacroix's composition and his own Cubist distortions. The series (1954–1955) transforms Matisse's serene, decorative sensuality into fragmented, dynamic energy, creating a "dialogue" across art history. Picasso appropriated Matisse's motifs—reclining nudes, raised arms, and exotic accoutrements—while intensifying color clashes and spatial ambiguity. This homage coincided with the Algerian War's outbreak, adding layers of postcolonial tension, though Picasso's focus remained artistic rather than political. Overall, Matisse's influence softened Picasso's late Cubism with Fauvist vibrancy, aiding his synthesis of analytic (sharp fragments) and synthetic (bold assemblages) styles into a colorful, multifaceted whole.
Specific Influences in Version O (Reference)
Version O epitomizes Matisse's impact, with its "maelstrom of colour" echoing Matisse's harmonious yet bold palettes. The reclining odalisque at the bottom—faceless, twisted to show multiple views—directly references Matisse's Blue Nude (Souvenir de Biskra) in pose and ambiguity, blending front and back in erotic abandon. The cross-legged figure with raised arms nods to Odalisque with Raised Arms, integrated into a chaotic ensemble. Matisse's decorative patterns appear in stylized textiles and screens, but Picasso shatters them Cubistically, synthesizing Matissean sensuality with his own geometric turmoil for a "visual summation" of art history.
Influences in Preparatory Versions
- Version F: This early variant strongly channels Matisse, with the dominant rightmost figure sprawling in a pose reminiscent of Blue Nude, including a downward-pointing breast and expansive form. Colors are vibrant but improvisational, prioritizing Matissean anatomical fluidity over full Cubist fragmentation, as a stepping stone to O's intensity.
- Version J: Matisse's influence appears in the ambiguous reclining foreground woman, whose impossible contortion (prone yet supine) echoes the spatial play and erotic poses in Matisse's odalisques, like Blue Nude. Subdued colors and sharper edges blend Matisse's sensuality with analytic Cubism, advancing toward O's synthesis.
- Version L: Less directly Matissean due to its grisaille monochrome, this isolated seated figure evokes Matisse's monumental odalisques (e.g., Odalisque in Red Trousers) in its pyramid-like poise and inscrutable power. Lacking color, it focuses on form, preparing O's integration of Matisse's vibrancy with Cubist structure.
Picasso's intention in the series was to revisit his Cubist roots—analytic dissection and synthetic collage—while incorporating Matisse's legacy for a late-career renewal. Matisse's odalisques injected color and sensuality, allowing Picasso to merge Fauvist expressiveness with Cubist multiplicity. Preparatory versions like F, J, and L experiment with these elements incrementally: F's loose Matissean poses, J's ambiguous distortions, and L's stark forms culminate in O's "brilliant synthesis," where fragmented planes vibrate with Matissean hues. This fusion not only mourns Matisse but reaffirms Cubism's vitality, creating a "Herculean effort" to transcend grief through artistic dialogue.
1
January 17, Version F
2020 SOLD for $ 29M by Christie's
From December 13, 1954 to January 18, 1955, Picasso painted six sketches 46 x 55 cm, sometimes limited to one detail. The day before the end of this first phase, he made an oil on canvas 54 x 65 cm which foreshadows the final work by its overall composition, its brilliant colors and the post-Cubist interweaving of forms.
That F version was sold for $ 29M by Christie's on July 10, 2020, lot 52. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
That F version was sold for $ 29M by Christie's on July 10, 2020, lot 52. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
2
February 14, Version O
2015 SOLD for $ 180M by Christie's
The next phase is devoted to larger formats, including grisaille paintings which allow the details of the drawing to be worked out. The result meets what was undoubtedly Picasso's main objective : making a modern following to the Demoiselles d'Avignon.
The Version J, painted on January 26, 1955, is the tenth opus in the series. It features the four women of the full compositions, one seated, one reclining, one smoking a narghile and one serving tea. This oil on canvas 114 x 146 cm was sold for $ 18.6M by Sotheby's on May 3, 2005, lot 12.
The Version L is a grisaille, 130 x 97 cm, dated February 9, 1955. The topic, centered on a figure of dominatrix woman, is executed in the manner of the experimental years of Cubism before the First World War. The cumulated experience of Picasso makes this painting a luminous work that exceeds in this respect many early Cubist paintings of the master. It was sold for $ 21.3M by Christie's on May 4, 2011.
The final iteration, oil on canvas 114 x 146 cm achieved on 14 February 1955, appears as a synthesis of this rather disparate set, like the ultimate completion of Pablo's art on that date.
It takes much imagination to see Delacroix's influence in the Version O, but the comparison with the Demoiselles is obvious. The women are naked or half dressed but in a later cubism style that excites the imagination by blurring the vision. The standing woman on the left displays a much better readability that joins the then recent art of Pablo.
Pablo has always enjoyed to confront himself with the great masters. The large mirror anticipates his series of Las Meninas painted two years later.
The fifteen paintings are exhibited together to be sold as a batch. For that purpose, they should not be considered as fourteen sketches and a final painting but as fifteen versions on the same theme.
Thus the dispersion will not be made under the control of the artist or his dealers but by the Ganz couple who bought the set in 1956 for owning the final version (O). The Ganzs will also keep for their collection one of the most complete sketches (C), a style typical of the time of Marie-Thérèse (H) and two grisailles of the final phase (K and M).
The selection of the Ganzs is much judicious. It does not include the 54 x 65 cm complete version of the first phase (F), probably because it does not bring much beside the O version.
The Version O of Les Femmes d'Alger was sold by Christie's for $ 32M on November 10, 1997 and for $ 180M on May 11, 2015, lot 8A.
Response by Grok :
Quote
ART FLAW @ART_FLAW
Jan 8, 2024
|LES RECORDS DU MARCHÉ DE L'ART 08/31| Pablo Picasso, Les femmes d’Alger Version O, 1955. Adjugée pour 179,4millions de dollars (frais compris) le 11 mai 2015 par Christie’s New York. L’œuvre fut acquise par la famille princière du Qatar. D'après les informations connues ce jour
The Version J, painted on January 26, 1955, is the tenth opus in the series. It features the four women of the full compositions, one seated, one reclining, one smoking a narghile and one serving tea. This oil on canvas 114 x 146 cm was sold for $ 18.6M by Sotheby's on May 3, 2005, lot 12.
The Version L is a grisaille, 130 x 97 cm, dated February 9, 1955. The topic, centered on a figure of dominatrix woman, is executed in the manner of the experimental years of Cubism before the First World War. The cumulated experience of Picasso makes this painting a luminous work that exceeds in this respect many early Cubist paintings of the master. It was sold for $ 21.3M by Christie's on May 4, 2011.
The final iteration, oil on canvas 114 x 146 cm achieved on 14 February 1955, appears as a synthesis of this rather disparate set, like the ultimate completion of Pablo's art on that date.
It takes much imagination to see Delacroix's influence in the Version O, but the comparison with the Demoiselles is obvious. The women are naked or half dressed but in a later cubism style that excites the imagination by blurring the vision. The standing woman on the left displays a much better readability that joins the then recent art of Pablo.
Pablo has always enjoyed to confront himself with the great masters. The large mirror anticipates his series of Las Meninas painted two years later.
The fifteen paintings are exhibited together to be sold as a batch. For that purpose, they should not be considered as fourteen sketches and a final painting but as fifteen versions on the same theme.
Thus the dispersion will not be made under the control of the artist or his dealers but by the Ganz couple who bought the set in 1956 for owning the final version (O). The Ganzs will also keep for their collection one of the most complete sketches (C), a style typical of the time of Marie-Thérèse (H) and two grisailles of the final phase (K and M).
The selection of the Ganzs is much judicious. It does not include the 54 x 65 cm complete version of the first phase (F), probably because it does not bring much beside the O version.
The Version O of Les Femmes d'Alger was sold by Christie's for $ 32M on November 10, 1997 and for $ 180M on May 11, 2015, lot 8A.
Response by Grok :
Quote
ART FLAW @ART_FLAW
Jan 8, 2024
|LES RECORDS DU MARCHÉ DE L'ART 08/31| Pablo Picasso, Les femmes d’Alger Version O, 1955. Adjugée pour 179,4millions de dollars (frais compris) le 11 mai 2015 par Christie’s New York. L’œuvre fut acquise par la famille princière du Qatar. D'après les informations connues ce jour
- The X post highlights Picasso's Les Femmes d'Alger (Version O), sold for $179.4 million in 2015 at Christie’s, a record-breaking price influenced by the Qatar royal family's strategic art investments, which have reshaped global art market dynamics since the 2000s, per Artprice data showing their $1 billion+ spending on Western art.
- This painting, part of a 1954-1955 series inspired by Delacroix, reflects Picasso’s peak creativity at La Californie, where the Mediterranean setting boosted his output, supported by art historian Douglas Cooper’s analysis of its stylistic evolution.
- The sale underscores a shift in art ownership, with the Qatar purchase aligning with their Medici-like cultural strategy, challenging Western dominance, as noted in a 2025 study from the Journal of Cultural Economics on Gulf states’ impact on auction records.
1955 Femme accroupie au Costume Turc
2007 SOLD for $ 31M by Christie's
A new series of paintings beginning on November 19, 1955 combines this orientalist fancy with the exploration of the face and body of his new muse Jacqueline Roque, shown in clothes and attitudes of a Turkish harem from Pablo's imagination. The style resumes the normal course of evolution of Picasso's art.
On February 4, 2014, Christie's sold for £ 17M the half length portrait in an armchair, oil on canvas 92 x 73 cm painted on 20 November 1955, where Jacqueline is adorned with multicolored turban and vest. Her face is almost realistic.
Another oil on canvas of the same series, 116 x 89 cm, dated 26 November 1955 is titled Femme accroupie au costume turc (Jacqueline). It was sold for $ 31M by Christie's on November 6, 2007, lot 73. Drawing attention to the body rather than to the face, this figure is more erotic.
On February 4, 2014, Christie's sold for £ 17M the half length portrait in an armchair, oil on canvas 92 x 73 cm painted on 20 November 1955, where Jacqueline is adorned with multicolored turban and vest. Her face is almost realistic.
Another oil on canvas of the same series, 116 x 89 cm, dated 26 November 1955 is titled Femme accroupie au costume turc (Jacqueline). It was sold for $ 31M by Christie's on November 6, 2007, lot 73. Drawing attention to the body rather than to the face, this figure is more erotic.
1959 Tête Sculptée de Dora Maar
2007 SOLD for $ 29M by Sotheby's
At the beginning of 1941 Picasso relocates his series of busts of Marie-Thérèse, made ten years earlier at Boisgeloup, to his studio on rue des Grands Augustins. In the same year, he makes a plaster head of Dora Maar, 80 cm high. This domineering work, larger than life, is in an idealized style which is in total opposition to the dramatic or allegorical portraits of Dora that he was painting at the same period.
This plaster is edited in bronze in two copies by Susse in 1958 plus two copies by Valsuani at an undocumented date.
Picasso owed a debt of honor to Guillaume Apollinaire, who died in 1918. He had received a commission for the funeral monument of his friend in the Père Lachaise graveyard, but none of his projects had been accepted. In the mid-1950s he offered to provide the statue of Dora as a symbol of the ideal woman for a monument to Apollinaire in the square of the church of Saint-Germain des Prés.
One of the Valsuani bronzes was installed in the square in 1959. The other was kept by the artist, which suggests that the cast by Valsuani was made especially for the Apollinaire project.
The copy which had been kept by Picasso was sold for $ 29M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Sotheby's on November 7, 2007, lot 22.
This plaster is edited in bronze in two copies by Susse in 1958 plus two copies by Valsuani at an undocumented date.
Picasso owed a debt of honor to Guillaume Apollinaire, who died in 1918. He had received a commission for the funeral monument of his friend in the Père Lachaise graveyard, but none of his projects had been accepted. In the mid-1950s he offered to provide the statue of Dora as a symbol of the ideal woman for a monument to Apollinaire in the square of the church of Saint-Germain des Prés.
One of the Valsuani bronzes was installed in the square in 1959. The other was kept by the artist, which suggests that the cast by Valsuani was made especially for the Apollinaire project.
The copy which had been kept by Picasso was sold for $ 29M from a lower estimate of $ 20M by Sotheby's on November 7, 2007, lot 22.
