An exploration of Expressionism that points the way

An installation shot from the opening of “Picasso & Jacequeline,” at the 57th St. location of Pace Gallery. ©2014 Estate of Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York | Photo by Kerry Ryan McFate / Pace Gallery — An installation shot from the opening of “Picasso & Jacequeline,” at the 57th St. location of Pace Gallery. ©2014 Estate of Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York |
Photo by Kerry Ryan McFate / Pace Gallery

BY STEPHANIE BUHMANN (stephaniebuhmann.com) | In its sixth major Picasso exhibition, which involves two venues and features over 125 works, Pace Gallery re-examines the artist’s fascination with his wife and muse, Jacqueline Roque (they married in 1961).

ART | PICASSO & JACQUELINE: THE EVOLUTION OF STYLE
Through January 10
At Pace Gallery
534 W. 25th St. (btw. 10th & 11th Aves.)
And
32 E. 57th St. (btw. Madison & Park Aves.)
Hours: Tues.–Sat., 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
Closed from 2 p.m. Dec. 24 through Jan. 1
Call 212-421-3292orvisit pacegallery.com

Stemming largely from the last two decades of Picasso’s oeuvre, the paintings, drawings, sculptures, and prints are on loan from the artist’s family and private collectors, as well as major American and European Museums.

Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973) | Jacqueline avec une Écharpe Noire (Jacqueline with a Black Scarf) | Oct. 11, 1954 | Oil on canvas, 36 ¼ x 28 ¾ in. (92 x 73 cm) | Private Collection | Photograph by Claude Germain. ©2014 Estate of Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

They reflect Picasso’s transformative exploration of Expressionism during this period, which was not only sparked by his obsession with Jacqueline but also by his admiration of Matisse, El Greco, Velazquez, Delacroix, and Manet.

The exhibition begins in 1954 — the year Picasso started living with and painting Jacqueline, which also happened to be the year Matisse died. An early rival and later a good friend, Matisse was the only contemporary that Picasso considered his equal.

Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973) | Jacqueline en Costume Turc (Jacqueline in Turkish Dress) | Nov. 20, 1955 | Oil on canvas, 39 1/3 x 32 in. (100 x 81 cm) | Private Collection | Photograph by Claude Germain. ©2014 Estate of Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Some of the most impressive works in this installation evoke various phases of Picasso’s own work (Fauvism, Cubism, Surrealism), as well as those of Matisse (the cut-outs, the odalisques and their heavily patterned Moorish backgrounds).

Photographs by Picasso confidant David Douglas Duncan, on view at the 25th St. location of Pace Gallery. ©2014 Estate of Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York | Photo by Kerry Ryan McFate / Pace Gallery — Photographs by Picasso confidant David Douglas Duncan, on view at the 25th St. location of Pace Gallery. ©2014 Estate of Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York |
Photo by Kerry Ryan McFate / Pace Gallery

In a matter of months, Picasso created a body of work that referenced the achievements of the first 73 years of his life, acknowledged his great respect for Matisse and Delacroix, and pointed the way forward to an Expressionist style that proved to be an influence on later Neo-Expressionist artists.

Accompanying the exhibition is a group of more than 50 photographs by David Douglas Duncan, one of the central documentary photographers of the 20th century and a confidant of Picasso. Duncan captured Picasso at work as well as scenes from quotidian life with his muse.