A masterwork by Pablo Picasso that is anticipated to sell for at least 120 million dollars at auctions went on display Monday in Dubai, beginning a series of uncommon viewings outside of the US.
A plus for the United Arab Emirates’ efforts to position itself as a global cultural superpower is the exhibition of the 1932 picture of Marie-Therese Walter, Picasso’s mistress and “golden muse” before it travels to Hong Kong and London.
In a statement, Sotheby’s Dubai noted that the viewing “marks the first occasion that a work of art of this caliber by the internationally renowned artist has previously been exhibited in the UAE” and that it is the first occasion the portrait has been exhibited outside of the US in fifty years.
According to UAE Culture Ministry Sheikh Salem bin Khalid al-Qassimi, “the UAE has achieved the reputation of being an international art the destination, which gets an additional boost as this unique Picasso is unveiled here.”
The “Femme a la montre” picture will be offered for sale in November as a component of a famous collection auction featuring the late New Yorker journalist Emily Fisher Landau.
In 1927, when Walter was 17 years old and Picasso was still wedded to Russian-Ukrainian ballerina dancer Olga Khokhlova, the two men met in Paris.
Walter was also seen in “Femme assise pres d’une fenetre (Marie-Therese),” which Christie’s auction house bought in 2021 for $103.4 million. Walter’s child with Picasso passed away this year.
Picasso is still regarded as one of the most significant artists of the modern era fifty years after passing away in 1973 at the age of 91. He is frequently lauded as a lively and imaginative genius.
However, in the aftermath of the #MeToo movement around sexual assault and harassment, allegations that this workaholic with a prolific output of paintings, sketches, and sculpture exerted a violent control over the women who lived his life and served as his inspiration have damaged his reputation.