© Sucesión Picasso, VEGAP, Madrid, 2023
This work was painted by Pablo Picasso in the spring of 1946 and is in the Musée National Picasso-Paris.
The woman depicted is Françoise Gilot, who was in a relationship with Pablo Picasso for approximately ten years. During this period of time she became the muse and protagonist of several of the artist's works, but this relationship ended when Françoise left the artist, never seeing him again, and later leaving the years of their life together in writing.
This work is one of the first we have of Gilot by Picasso, as they had only been in a relationship for a year when it was executed. The work shows the influence of the meeting with the artist Fernand Mourlot in the autumn of 1945, which motivated Picasso to take up a forgotten technique: lithography. From this moment on, we find several lithographs where one of the favourite subjects is the portrait of Françoise, of whom he made up to 10 portraits on 14 June 1946.
On the other hand, in this work we can also appreciate the influence of the painter Henri Matisse. Weeks before the execution of this work, Picasso and Gilot visited Matisse's studio. From this meeting Picasso drew great inspiration, which is evident in this work.
This work stands out from other portraits both for its composition and for the way in which he portrays his lover: Gilot is depicted with an oval-shaped face, radiant eyes that look directly at us, and abundant hair that occupies most of the space. The young woman appears in a relaxed pose looking directly at the viewer. Through the composition, but above all through her gaze, we can understand the young woman's beauty and personality.