Does anyone not know the name Picasso? Based on sales of his works at auctions, he holds the title of top ranked artist according to the Art Market Trends report. He was also a prolific artist with estimates of 50,000 works of art producedin his lifetime. (This includes paintings, drawings, sculptuers, etc).
Pablo Picasso worked up until the day he died at age 91; literally painting till 3 am on Sunday, April 8th, which was just hours before his death.
His last well known self-portriat was done a little less than a year before his death, entitled Self Portrait Facing Death (June 30, 1972).
The piece is done with crayon on paper, and took several months to complete. A friend, Pierre Daix, tells of his memory of the piece on a visit to Picasso, "[Picasso] held the drawing beside his face to show that the expression of fear was a contrivance." Then on another visit 3 months later, Pierre recalled that the harsh colored lines were even deeper, and Pierre writes, "He did not blink. I had the sudden impression that he was staring his own death in the face, like a good Spaniard"
There is much comentary about this piece. People talk about the fear of death Picasso had and how terrified his eyes look. They comment on the deep lines of age, and the work symbolizing Picasso's confrontation of death.
Interestingly, as I researched this post I found a complete catolgue of Picasso's works, in sequential order. It appears that just days prior and days after the piece above, he did several other self portraits.
I'm placing them in order, and wonder if there is a comment in the progression, I certainly feel there is a change with each. Below, copyright Estate of Pablo Picasso/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, are Self Portrait (June 28, 1972), Self Portrait (July 2, 1972), and Self Portrait (July 3, 1972)
In all his works through the next months before his death, I saw no further self portraits, these above were done in a burst, as if when done with these, he was done contemplating self and death.
Picasso's death itself was sudden, waking on the morning of the 8th with an inabilty to get out of bed, calling for his wife, and dying 10 mins later. His cause of death was likely a heart attack with complications from heart failure.
I am happy to have stummbled upon the other portraits, giving us different glimpses of the idea of himself. Having such different works done in such a short time, gives testament to the complexity of all of our own self concepts. Just as I see the feelings of chaos, fear and acceptance in the works above, my own patients contemplating death can bounce from chaos, fear and acceptance sometimes in the span of a few hours.
References and more reading on the title piece:
http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/picasso/home/ed/8works/8works_8
http://www.artst.org/picasso/PabloPicasso-Self-Portrait-1972.jpg.html
*And special thanks to Karen Faught for alerting me to this piece
FAQs
About Self Portrait Facing Death
The painting, completed less than a year before his death, captures the artist's abstract perspective of facing mortality. The most striking feature of the painting is the vibrant green and pink shading dominating his face, with wide-open eyes staring out from the canvas.
What was the last self-portrait of Picasso in 1972? ›
Pablo Picasso, Self-portrait (1972)
Picasso painted up to the hours before his death at 91, and the years prior were marked by his prolific output. Self-portrait Facing Death, a crayon drawing on paper, was completed over several months and remains among the most famous works produced in his late career.
What happened to Picasso in 1973? ›
Picasso died on April 8, 1973, at the age of 91. His cause of death was a pulmonary edema, or fluid in the lungs, The New York Times reported. According to his obituary, Picasso died at his villa in France in the company of his second wife Jacqueline Roque.
What was the art era in 1972? ›
Art of the Year - 1972 - Self Portrait Facing Death, Pablo Picasso. The 1970's art world showed the continued influence of movements from the 1960's such as Minimalism, Post-Minimalism and Performance Art. The mid-70's brought the return of painting as a serious medium for avant-garde artists.
What does Picasso's self-portrait represent? ›
The Self-Portrait indicates the beginning of Picasso's new stage, bringing to the forefront his newly acquired knowledge of Iberian sculpture art. Iberian elements are reflected in the big eyes and sharp triangle of the nose.
What caused the death of Picasso? ›
Pablo Picasso, died in the south of France yesterday. He was 91 and had been ill for some weeks. A doctor called from the small village of Mougins, near Cannes, early in the morning said: “It was already too late when I arrived.” The cause of death was given as lung congestion.
How much is Picasso's self-portrait worth? ›
Estimated at $70m, Christie's is making much of the fact that the painting was owned by Victor and Sally Ganz whose collection remains one of the benchmarks of the 20th Century.
How old was Picasso when he painted his self-portrait? ›
The self-portrait from 1896 was made when he was just 15 years old and represents a realistic style compared to his later works. What is this? The self-portrait from 1899-1900 shows the beginning of Picasso's shift towards Modernism.
What is the oldest picture of Picasso? ›
The artist Pablo Picasso's first painting is called El Picador. The young artist painted the work at just eight years old in 1889.
Who was Picasso married to when he died? ›
Jacqueline Picasso or Jacqueline Roque (24 February 1927 – 15 October 1986) was the muse and second wife of Pablo Picasso. Their marriage lasted 12 years until his death, during which time he created over 400 portraits of her, more than any of Picasso's other lovers.
Pablo Picasso is buried on April 10, 1973, in the park of the castle of Vauvenargues.
Where is the tragedy by Picasso now? ›
Poor People by the Sea (Des pauvres au bord de la mer), also known as The Tragedy, is an oil on panel painting made in 1903 by Pablo Picasso. It is currently in Washington, DC, in the National Gallery of Art.
Who was the national artist for painting in 1972? ›
In 1972, Fernando Amorsolo became the first Filipino to be distinguished as the Philippine's National Artist in Painting.
How much is a Picasso worth? ›
But even the lowest price for the top 100 works by the artist sold at auction is a whopping $17 million, according to the Artnet Price Database. In 2021 alone, a peak year for auctions, sales of Picasso's paintings reached nearly $532 million for just 60 works sold, an average of about $8.8 million per work.
What is 70s art called? ›
The period of the late 1960's and early 1970's is seen as the breaking point offering a fresh definition for creative production. This time marks the birth of the term contemporary art, also referenced as postmodernism art.
What does the self portrait with death playing the fiddle symbolize? ›
Since people were dying at such a fast rate, someone who was here today could be dead tomorrow. Death as a fiddler was a common representation for centuries. The speakers talked about the fiddle having only one string. I guess the symbol was that once that string broke, the painter's life would be over.
What is the meaning of the self portrait with death playing the fiddle? ›
In this self-portrait, Death is playing on the lowest string, tuned to G, which is here also the only string of the fiddle. The painter, alert, has paused in his work. According to the story, Böcklin only painted in the figure of Death in response to his friends' asking what he seemed to be listening to.
What is the self-portrait as the allegory of? ›
1638-9. Artemisia Gentileschi's painting is the most famous self-portrait by a female artist. Uniquely she combines features of her own portrait with the depiction of the female personification of Painting, something that only a female artist could do.
When was the Self Portrait with Death Playing the Fiddle painted? ›
Self-Portrait with Death Playing the Fiddle is a painted self-portrait executed in 1872 by the Swiss symbolist artist Arnold Böcklin. He first exhibited at the Kunstverein München in the same year, establishing his reputation in Munich's artistic community. It is now in the Alte Nationalgalerie, in Berlin.
Does anyone not know the name Picasso? Based on sales of his works at auctions, he holds the title of top ranked artist according to the Art Market Trends report. He was also a prolific artist with estimates of 50,000 works of art producedin his lifetime. (This includes paintings, drawings, sculptuers, etc).
The piece is done with crayon on paper, and took several months to complete. A friend, Pierre Daix, tells of his memory of the piece on a visit to Picasso, "[Picasso] held the drawing beside his face to show that the expression of fear was a contrivance." Then on another visit 3 months later, Pierre recalled that the harsh colored lines were even deeper, and Pierre writes, "He did not blink. I had the sudden impression that he was staring his own death in the face, like a good Spaniard"
