The Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena is exhibiting a set of exceptional prints by Pablo Picasso, made between the 1930s and 1960s, that illustrate the artist’s bold experiments, technically and stylistically, in the graphic arts.
“Unseen Picasso” is now on exhibit through January 10 and examines a select group of iconic and lesser-known prints – 16 of them – of enduring subjects from the artist’s repertoire, including his muses and the nude.
“The exhibition looks at the singular characteristics that make these prints rare or unique and therefore infrequently seen in exhibition or publication. Further, it invites visitors to look closely at the characteristics in each impression that distinguish the Norton Simon print from others produced in the edition,” the Norton Simon Museum said in a statement.
The exhibit includes the 1946 lithograph “Two Nude Women,” of which Picasso created 21 states (a state is any stage in the development of a print at which impressions are pulled). The Norton Simon Museum’s unique impression of the eighth state is also noteworthy as the sole print from this campaign to be printed in color.
Visitors will also see his ambitious four-color lithograph “Woman with a Hairnet,” which illustrates another critical classification in printmaking. Here, the artist’s inscription “Bon à tirer” (ready to print) authorizes the printer to “pull” an edition. Picasso’s signature identifies this trial proof as the model of perfection that the small edition would have to match.
Other prints in the collection include “Dora Maar,” which represents Picasso’s lover and in which the artist used Japan paper to provide a suitable foil to the Prussian blue ink adopted for this aquatint (an intaglio technique that produces effects similar to a wash drawing). By annotating this print “epreuve d’état” (artist’s proof), Picasso indicated that it was to be reserved for his own use.
In 1958, Picasso dove headlong into producing linocuts, a type of relief printing that uses a linoleum block. The exhibit also includes “Bacchanal with Goats and Spectator,” made in 1959, where Picasso illustrated his impulse to create compositions in which color and line were nearly inseparable, as is the case with linoleum.
“Unseen Picasso” is organized by Curator Gloria Williams Sander. It is on view in the Norton Simon Museum’s small exhibition gallery on the Main Level.
The Museum is open 12 to 5 p.m. Thursday to Monday, and is closed on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Visitors will be required to wear a face mask covering your mouth and nose at all times, even if you’ve been vaccinated. Purchasing tickets in advance is strongly encouraged. Museum members do not need to reserve tickets in advance.
For more information about visiting the Norton Simon Museum, go to www.nortonsimon.org/visit/
