Pablo Picasso

Draisseur de Lion - verso

Private Collection, Switzerland
Galerie Hauser & Wirth, Zurich
Sale: Sotheby's, London, 8th December 1999, lot 296
Purchased at the above sale by the late owner

Executed on a printed book page; both recto and verso are printed. The work is attached to the mount at all four corners, the recto is floating in the overmount and the verso is visible through a window cut in the mount. The sheet is slighlty undulated and there is wear, including nicks and tears to all four edges, some of which have traces of restorer's paper supporting them. There are a few light creases in places. Otherwise this work is in overall fairly good condition.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This drawing is executed on pages taken from a copy of Oeuvres dramatiques de Shakespeare edited by Horace Meyer and published by Imprimerie d'Amedie Saintin, Paris, 1835. The subject is related to the circus theme which preoccupied Picasso during 1905, and culminated in the great oil painting Les Saltimbanques of the same year (see: Christian Zervos, Pablo Picasso, Oeuvres de 1895 a 1906, Paris, vol. I, pl. 123, no. 285, National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.)