PICASSO (Pablo) - Lot 254

PICASSO (Pablo) SABARTÉS (Jaime) & BOECK (Wilhelm). Picasso. Paris, Flammarion, circa 1955–1956. Large in-4 volume, publisher’s binding adorned with an original drawing by Picasso, extensively illustrated in black and white and in color. An important monograph devoted to Pablo Picasso, published under the authority of two privileged witnesses to his work: Jaime Sabartés, a close friend, secretary, and confidant of the Spanish master for over thirty years, and art historian Wilhelm Boeck. This work is one of the major overviews of Picasso from the mid-20th century and remains a first-rate account of the painter’s career. Featuring several hundred reproductions, the volume traces the artist’s entire evolution, from his early works to his late experiments, including the Blue and Rose periods, Cubism, large-scale stage sets, sculpture, ceramics, and prints. Its abundant illustrations, high-quality printing, and Sabartés’s close relationship with Picasso give it exceptional documentary value. Copies preserved in their original illustrated publisher’s bindings are now characteristic examples of major postwar art publications. This work has become a classic in the bibliography of Picasso’s works, sought after by both the painter’s admirers and bibliophiles interested in major illustrated monographs of the 20th century. Condition: Publisher’s illustrated binding. Significance: Picasso, modern art, Cubism, art monographs, Picasso bibliography.