Pablo Picasso

Walter P. Chrysler, Jr., New York (by 1939 and until at least 1946)

Fine Arts Associates (Otto M. Gerson), New York

Ritter Collection (sold: Sotheby's, New York, October 25, 1972, lot 42)

Private Collection (acquired at the above sale)

Acquired by the present owner

New York, Museum of Modern Art & Chicago, The Art Institute, Picasso, Forty Years of his Art, 1939, no. 156, illustrated in the catalogue (catalogued as dated)

New York, Fine Arts Associates, Paintings from the Ritter Collection, 1959, no. 11, illustrated in the catalogue

New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Summer Loan Exhibition, 1968

New York, Brooklyn Museum, Summer Exhibition, 1971-72 (on loan)

Maud Dale, Picasso, New York, 1930, illustrated pl. 48

Usaburo Ihara, Picasso, Tokyo, 1936, illustrated pl. 13

Alfred H. Barr, Jr., Picasso, Fifty Years of his Art, 1946, illustrated p. 119

Christian Zervos, Pablo Picasso, oeuvres de 1920 à 1922, vol. 4, Paris, 1951, no. 279, illustrated pl. 98 (illustrated without the signature)

Wilhelm Boeck & W. Kohlhammer, Picasso, 1955, no. 193, illustrated p. 385

The Picasso Project, ed., Picasso's Paintings, Watercolors, Drawings and Sculpture. Neoclassicism I, 1920-1921, San Francisco, 1995,  no. 21-258, illustrated p. 247

Josep Palau i Fabre, Picasso, From the ballets to drama, 1917-1926, Barcelona, 1999, no. 1042, illustrated p. 278 (illustrated without the signature)

Pastel on wove paper that is stretched tautly and mounted to board. It is possible that this work was mounted on the board immediately after the artist completed this composition, as the board is contemporaneous with the sheet. The artist has covered the entire sheet evenly with pastel. A tiny area of the extreme upper left corner of the sheet has been repaired, and there is some slight wear to the pastel along the top edge. Over all, this work is in excellent, stable condition. Colors: The colors in the catalogue are fairly accurate.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Picasso executed this Paysage during the summer of 1921, which he and Olga spent at Fontainebleau, a town south-east of Paris.  Unlike the previous summers spent in various towns along the Mediterranean coast, at Fontainebleau they had a quieter, more isolated life, where Picasso could fully devote himself to his work, and Olga could devote her time to their son Paulo, born earlier in the year.  The main image that preoccupied the artist at this time was a woman at the fountain, a series that resulted in several masterpieces.  Among numerous paintings, drawings and pastels of figures, the present landscape stands out as a rarity.  Picasso painted and drew several views of the interior and exterior of the house he and Olga stayed in, however this appears to be the only panoramic landscape of Fontainebleau he executed during his stay in the region.  While unique in its subject matter, this Paysage reflects the neo-classical style that Picasso pioneered in the early 1920s.