Pablo Picasso - Evening & Day Editions New York Monday, October 26, 2015 | Phillips

Evening & Day Editions

New York Auction 26 October 2015

  • Literature

    Douglas Cooper, Picasso, 19 plats en argent par François et Pierre Hugo, Paris, 1977 (another example illustrated)
    see Alain Raimé 282-3 (earthenware versions)

  • Catalogue Essay

    Picasso was already years into his exploration of ceramic objects when he had an inspired discussion with a friend in the mid-1950s about these ceramics and how they related to precious metal plates by artists in the 16th and 17th century in Venice, France and Augsburg. This led to an introduction to the accomplished silversmith François Victor Hugo, who Picasso commissioned to create a series of platters, dishes and medallions in gold and silver after original designs by Picasso. The artist explored the process for years, eventually creating several plate versions in small editions of 15 to 20 examples each due to the painstaking process of fabrication. The metal had to be heated and reheated while being hammered into a wax matrix, specifically created for each design. Picasso was encouraged by the results and continued to make other medallions and objects in collaboration with the Hugo studio including with François' son Pierre.

  • Artist Biography

    Pablo Picasso

    Spanish • 1881 - 1973

    One of the most dominant and influential artists of the 20th century, Pablo Picasso was a master of endless reinvention. While significantly contributing to the movements of Surrealism, Neoclassicism and Expressionism, he is best known for pioneering the groundbreaking movement of Cubism alongside fellow artist Georges Braque in the 1910s. In his practice, he drew on African and Iberian visual culture as well as the developments in the fast-changing world around him.

    Throughout his long and prolific career, the Spanish-born artist consistently pushed the boundaries of art to new extremes. Picasso's oeuvre is famously characterized by a radical diversity of styles, ranging from his early forays in Cubism to his Classical Period and his later more gestural expressionist work, and a diverse array of media including printmaking, drawing, ceramics and sculpture as well as theater sets and costumes designs. 

    View More Works

12

Pablo Picasso

Visage de faune (Faun's Face)

1956
Silver plate,
9 7/8 x 9 7/8 in. (25.1 x 25.1 cm)
impressed signature and numbered 11/20 on the reverse (there were also 2 artist's proofs and 2 author's proofs), produced by Atelier François and Pierre Hugo, Aix-en-Provence, circa 1980 (with their maker's mark on the reverse).

Estimate
$30,000 - 50,000 

Sold for $37,500

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Evening & Day Editions

New York Auction 26 October 2015