PICASSO ETCHINGS FROM THE VOLLARD SUITE FOR SALE AT BONHAMS
Six prints from Picasso’s celebrated La Suite Vollard, (The Vollard Suite) which is currently on display in its entirety at the British Museum are to be auctioned at Bonhams Print Sale in London on 11 July.
The 100 print series was commissioned by the art dealer Ambroise Vollard. Rather than pay the artist, Vollard gave Picasso paintings by Renoir and Cezanne instead. Picasso worked on the etchings for seven years in all and it then took a further two years for the print maker Roger Lacourière to produce the 260 sets in the print run. Vollard’s death in 1939 and the outbreak of the Second World War prevented the release of the work until the early 1950s.
The works in the Bonhams sale are Le Viol II (£2,00-3,500); Marie Thérèse agenouillée contemplant un groupe sculpté £5,000-7,000; Femme nue devant une Statue £8,000-12,000; Modèle nu et Sculptures, £6,000-8,000; Minotaure, Buveur et Femmes £10,000-15,000 and Le Viol sous la Fenêtre, £4,000-6,000. Most of these date from 1933 when Picasso’s work on the series was at its more productive. They are executed in the neo-classical style which was such a dominant feature of his graphic work in the late 1920s and ‘30s and, like much of Picasso’s output, reflect developments both in his own life and the wider world.
Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world's largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. The present company was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. In August 2002, the company acquired Butterfields, the principal firm of auctioneers on the West Coast of America. Today, Bonhams offers more sales than any of its rivals, through two major salerooms in London: New Bond Street and Knightsbridge; and a further three in the UK regions and Scotland. Sales are also held in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Carmel, New York and Connecticut in the USA; and Germany, France, Monaco, Hong Kong and Australia. Bonhams has a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives in 25 countries offering sales advice and valuation services in 60 specialist areas. For a full listing of upcoming sales, plus details of Bonhams specialist departments go to www.bonhams.com.
