50 years after his death, Picasso is more alive than ever

Today, 8 April 2023, marks half a century since the death of Pablo Picasso. We review some of the exhibitions dedicated to the painter that are being held -or will be held- in 2023.

Source: various museums · Image: Left: Pablo Picasso in 1908. Photo by RMN-Grand Palais // Right: Pablo Picasso in 1962. Source: Vea y Lea, Argentina.

Since February 8, the Musée de l’Homme-Muséum national d’histoire naturelle in Paris is presenting “Picasso and the Prehistory”, an exhibition that includes paintings, sculptures, drawings, ceramics and engraved pebbles. And since February 19, the Fondation Beyeler in Basel is hosting “Picasso. The Artist and the Model: Last Paintings”, presenting a selection of ten late paintings showing images of artist and model. From 17 March to 18 June 2023, the Albertina Museum in Vienna shows 18 paintings from the Museum’s own collection and a total of over 70 works by “a man who, even during his own lifetime, had become the archetype of the modern artist”, as the Museum states in a press release. Starting today, the Musée Picasso, Antibes, is presenting “Picasso 1969-1972: The End of the Beginning”. From July 13 to October 15, 2023, the Collection Lambert in Avignon will present “Picasso à la Collection Lambert en Avignon 50 ans après”.

Of course, several museums in Spain (Picasso’s native country) are dedicating exhibitions to the artist. From March 23 to June 25, the Museo de Bellas Artes de A Coruña (the city where Picasso lived from 1891 to 1895, before moving to Barcelona) presents “Picasso, blanco en el recuerdo azul” (Picasso, white in blue memory). From March 29 to July 2, the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, Madrid, presents “Picasso. Masterpieces from the Nahmad Collection.” Starting today and until September 10, the Museo Picasso in Málaga organizes the exhibition “Picasso: matter and body”. From June 13 to September 17, 2023, the Museo Nacional del Prado hosts “Picasso – El Greco”, an exhibition that examines the relationship between these two revolutionary painters. From 4 October 2023 to 14 January 2024, the Museo Thyssen in Madrid presents “Picasso. The Sacred and the Profane”, an exhibition that includes around 30 works. And from 14 November 2023 to 4 March 2024, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía will host “Picasso 1906. The Great Transformation”, an exhibition that “aims to shed light on the artist’s attention to the body and its construction from a contemporary perspective around 1906, a key year in Picasso’s production and life.”

In America, the Mint Museum, Charlotte, is hosting “Picasso Landscapes: Out of Bounds” (February 11 – May 21, 2023), an exhibition of more than 40 works spanning Picasso’s full career. From May 12 to August 6, 2023, the Guggenheim Museum will present “Young Picasso in Paris”, defined as “an intimate exhibition comprising a total of ten paintings and works on paper executed during Pablo Picasso’s introduction to the French capital”. From October 1, 2023, to February 10, 2024, the Museum of Modern Art will present “Picasso in Fontainebleau”, an exhibition “examining three months in a legendary artist’s career, when he created an astonishingly varied body of work between July and September 1921 in the town of Fontainebleau, France”, as the MoMA states in a press release. And from October 6, 2023, to January 7, 2024, the recently reopened Hispanic Society Museum & Library will present “Picasso and La Celestina.”

News

50 years after his death, Picasso is more alive than ever

Apr 8, 2023

Exhibitions

Picasso and Ingres meet in California

Oct 20, 2022

Exhibitions

Picasso in the mirror of Ingres

Jun 4, 2022

News

Picasso’s portrait of Marie-Thérèse Walter as a sea creature to be auctioned at Sotheby’s

Apr 7, 2022

News

Christie’s to auction one of Picasso’s major surrealist paintings

Jan 21, 2022

PART 2 of our Exclusive Interview with freaky-Deek

Freaky-Deek is a talented sculptor and videographer hailing from the Black Forest region in Germany. He has been showcasing his work in various galleries, exhibitions, and social media platforms. Having grown tired of just typing on a keyboard, freaky-Deek decided to dive into his creative passion and start his own business. As a former figurine collector, he wanted to create something truly unique and dynamic. So, he combined his electronics skills with his love for art and crafted sculptures with added features such as lights and sound. Recently freaky-Deek embarked on a new journey with the creation of a one-of-a-kind polymer clay cyborg sculpt, known as Project AD-01.

What is the primary skill set one must possess to be a good sculptor? 

Well, I still don’t know what a good sculptor is, but what I am very sure of   is the fact that, if you want to build something you haven’t done before, you absolutely have to be highly passionate about it in order to be able to push through to the end. It is a journey of many setbacks until things become easier, and you have to be convinced of the idea you’re trying to portray.

On average, how long does it take for you to create an artwork? 

It all depends the complexity and scale. I’m constantly expanding both of these factors. For example ‘The Tank Girl’ alone took about 100 hours, plus video work. Project AD-01 took 18 months! I stopped counting the hours as it wouldn’t make sense anymore. When I do smaller commissions-based works, like ‘The Goomba’ piece, I try not to take longer than a 1 month, but it all depends on the client. I just don’t want people having to wait too long for their commission. 

Are sculptures currently in demand and what is the state of this market from your perspective? 

Handmade sculptures are always in demand and, in my opinion, they always will be, as there is a very personal connection to it usually… a memory of a certain video game, a scene from a movie, a certain pose, or colour scheme… These are just a few examples why people associate with a sculpture, diorama, or an action figure. But my feeling, with the global financial situations right now, is that people are being more careful about how they send their money.

I also think we’re at the verge of a massive change, especially because of AI. But that doesn’t mean physical art will get extinct – it just changes. Compare it with the 90s, when Photoshop first hit the market – every illustrator thought that it will be the end for physical illustrations and paintings, yet artists still paint on canvas! I think real art has has become even more valuable because it’s not easy to do things physically, and because a completely new profession arose simultaneously – the digital artist. So, in my opinion, one medium doesn’t kill the other, instead it makes art more unique and valuable.

Are you a full-time artist and is it hard to make a living with your art?

I’m still in the beginnings stages of my art career, so I often do other work like video editing or other part-time jobs to maintain and expand my art projects. Being a sculptor is always a serious financial gamble. Right now, it’s a lot of hard (but rewarding) work with unstable income. At the same time I also think it is important to not sell your work underpriced. Your effort has value, and it is important to stay true to that.

How do you price your work? 

I try not to speak publicly about my prices that much, but I can explain the process of how I come up with the price a little. For a commissioned piece, it is all about convincing me that this is something I might love doing. Without that, no money in the world is worth even trying it. When someone approaches me with an awesome idea, that is usually the starting point for the project. From there on, together, we develop the “internal movie” that I mentioned earlier. It is so important to have a collective vision. After the concept is settled, I start with drafts and tiny prototyping, followed by calculating the material costs and time I need to build it.

Who are your clients and with how many do you work on a regular basis?

Only one at a time. I want to give each commission my full attention.

My clientele varies greatly from one another, so you can’t just pigeonhole them. But what many of them have in common is, that they are mainly private collectors that share similar interests, and were influenced by the same period of movies, games, and comics.

How do you sell your art and which sculptures sell better, larger, or smaller? 

In general. people reach out to me because they have seen something on my social media profiles. Now I have Kickstarter campaigns going. As for which sell better, the smaller ones, because they are easier to store and create, but I think it’s not really comparable.

Who are your favorite sculptors and why?  

As a matter of fact I don’t have any favourite sculptors simply because the thought never occurred to me, but I do have some favourite visual artists, like film director Zack Snyder and comic book writer Frank Miller. Their cinematic and literary mastery of the dark elements is just amazing. I also like the colorful and witty works of Jamie Hewlett and Alan Martin. Their dystopian and humoristic comics had a big influence on me.

Outside of sculpting, what types of art do you like to surround yourself with? 

I really love music and movies. I really appreciate graphic design, even if I have hard time doing it. But it’s not really about the craft itself – it’s more about the people that pursue it. They are so generous and clever sometimes!

Do NFTs interest you as an artist? 

I am certainly aware of NFTs and I get the idea, but it is not something I’m pursuing at the moment.

How has COVID impacted your business and what changes, if any, did you have to make? 

Covid was just the weirdest experience for all of us, but it gave me the opportunity to finally start working on Project AD-01.

What advice would you give to your younger self at the beginning of your art career? 

1. A quote from the movie Wayne’s World 2: “If you build it – they will come!”

2. Start from scratch. Believe it. Build it!

3. The most important thing – Be Kind. Otherwise no one will ever care.

www.freaky-deek.com

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