Recently, three Pablo Picasso drawings have come up for auction. The drawings are all figure drawings, featuring nude models in various poses. They are incredible examples of Picasso’s more traditional naturalistic artwork, as opposed to his more famous cubist work. The artist had a strong artistic foundation in traditional art, with his early art education coming from his father who was a professor.
The most recent drawing up for sale, titled Deux femmes nues se tenant, was created by Picasso in 1906 and shows two nude female models standing together. The drawing is quite simple and austere, highlighting Picasso’s mastery of line and shape. The drawing went up for auction at Lempertz auction house, based in Germany, in their Modern and Contemporary Art Evening Sale on July 19, 2020. The work was estimated to sell for 400,000 - 500,000 EUR ($447,477 - $559,346 USD) and ended up selling for 325,000 EUR Premium ($363,575 USD). The hammer price was most likely lower than the estimate due to the economic hardship from the current COVID-19 pandemic affecting people everywhere.
On June 14, 2019, the drawing La Source / Femme au chien, 1921 went to auction at Galerie Kornfeld Bern in Switzerland. The line drawing features a reclining female model in the nude holding a vase pouring water with a dog lapping it up at her side. The work clearly calls on ancient Greek imagery and motif, a constant source of inspiration for Picasso throughout his career. The composition is simple yet alluring and captures the viewer’s attention despite the lack of any color or shading. The work was estimated to sell for 200,000 CHF ($200,160 USD) in their Art of the 19th to 21st Centuries: Part 1 auction. The hammer price exceeded the estimate at 210,000 CHF ($210,168 USD).
Picasso’s Homme nu couché, 1967 went to auction on November 30, 2018, in Lempertz auction house’s Modern Art sale. This drawing is the most abstracted out of the three with loops of colored lines supplementing the line drawing of a reclined nude model. The work showcases Picasso’s artistic hand, as it’s easy to see the artist’s process and technique. It was estimated to sell for 360,000 - 400,000 EUR ($407,608 - $452,898 USD) at auction, and ended up with a hammer price of 688,000 EUR Premium ($778,985 USD), far surpassing the expected amount.
