Seattle Gay News - Mobile Edition - Picasso Exhibition at SAM brings world art to Seattle - Picasso Exhibition at SAM brings world art to Seattle - Friday, October 22, 2010

Picasso Exhibition at SAM brings world art to Seattle

Seattle Gay News
Mobile Edition
rss: SGN Calendar For Mobile Phones http://sgn.org/rssCalendarMobile.xml

SGN ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT SECTION

SGN Mobile Front Page

MOVIE REVIEWS
CALENDAR
NORTHWEST NEWS CALENDAR
CLASSIFIED

click here to go to the main SGN website

posted Friday, October 22, 2010 - Volume 38 Issue 43

Picasso Exhibition at SAM brings world art to Seattle
by Milton W. Hamlin - SGN A&E Writer

As expected, attendance for the first weeks of the Seattle Art Museum's Picasso: Masterpieces from the Musee National Picasso in Paris has exceeded expectations and promises to turn the three-month exhibit into an Emerald City record-breaker. Before the show opened in early October, 12,000 student tickets had been sold, causing SAM to announce that all available student tour tickets were sold out. In addition, more than 10,000 online adult tickets had been sold - an incredible number for any Seattle exhibit, but almost unbelievable in this era of financial insecurity. There's no doubt about it: SAM has a smash hit on its hands with the Picasso exhibit, and all of Seattle will profit from the success of the show.

The National Museum of Picasso, Paris (to use a literal English translation) was founded in 1985 to display the group of works acquired by the French state from his heirs in lieu of inheritance tax in 1979. Picasso, born in Spain in 1881, died in France, his adopted country, in 1973. Because he was famous early and literally saved everything, he left more than 70,000 works preserved in his various studios. While the French museum notes that nearly everything in its collection is from the private collection of the world-famous artist, many of the items are studies for later, completed works. Some of the best works - a painting of his first son when he was 4 years old, a painting of his mistress, Dora Maar - were clearly personal favorites, many of the Museum's works are simply remnants of an incredibly productive life. For his early masterpiece, 1907's 'Les Demoiselles d'Avignon' ('The Women Of Avignon'), Picasso created at least 1,000 sketches, all of which were on file on his death. (Several are included in the Seattle show.)

The Museum's collection of Picasso's works currently consists of 254 paintings, 167 sculptures, 108 ceramics, 1,544 drawings, 58 sketchbooks, 88 illustrated books, and hundreds of other works in various mediums. Since its founding in 1985, the Museum has been given select works from other French estates and occasionally buys a major work from a private collection or at auction. The collection, obviously, continues to grow and become more and more refined. (One charming anecdote about the collection's works on display in Seattle: many are unsigned. It seems that Picasso had the habit of signing a work only after it was sold, and since many of these works were part of his unsold inventory, many are unsigned.)

While the Paris Picasso Museum is undergoing a major restoration of its historic building, the Museum is allowing a select number of items to tour - a rarity for the Museum. Only three American cities will see the show of more than 150 items - a mixture of paintings, drawings, prints, photographs and sculptures. Many are world-class items, many are delightful insights into the Spanish master. More than half of the items are fully developed paintings or sculptures. All are worth repeated visits to the exhibition.

All eras of Picasso's career are represented in the exhibit: the Blue Period, the Rose Period, the Cubist influences, the African art inspirations, and the Classical Period. While every visitor will have personal favorites, this writer recommends special attention to 'The Two Brothers' from 1906; 'Paulo As A Harlequin,' 1924; 'Two Women Running On The Beach,' 1922; 'Reading,' a 1932 cubist delight; 'Portrait Of Dora Maar,' 1937, and several of the sculptures late in the collection.

SAM recommends pre-purchase of exhibition tickets. School groups will fill the museum many weekdays (a time many visitors would assume that traffic would be light) so careful planning is advised. The museum will remain open until 9 p.m. on most Thursdays and Fridays during the show, which runs until Monday, January 17. Complete details on the exhibit's hours, ticket prices, pre-sale details are available at (206) 654-3100. Online ticket sales are offered at www.picassoseattle.org . While the exhibit surcharge is among the highest in Seattle history, SAM members are always admitted free of charge - making this a great year to join the museum. Discounts are also offered for Thursday and Friday evenings, First Thursdays (only $12 general, $9 senior/military, $8 student), First Fridays (seniors only) and various group sales. When in doubt, ask.

The Seattle Picasso Exhibit is truly a 'once in a lifetime' opportunity for most Emerald City art fans. Check it out.

M.I.A. whips through Seattle like a typhoon

------------------------------

Picasso Exhibition at SAM brings world art to Seattle

------------------------------

The Sisters offers a look at Sisters around the world

------------------------------

Splashy Sextet a fantastic live-art concept

------------------------------

Pro-Gay rights band Steel Train set to rock Seattle

------------------------------

Lucia an unforgettable triumph at Seattle Opera

------------------------------