A Pablo Picasso face-off is taking place between two New York City art galleries. Pace and Gagosian have large exhibitions on the work of the Spanish master at the same time.
The Gagosian show is curated by Picasso's most famous biographer, John Richardson. It's called "Picasso and the Camera" and it explores how photography influenced his work. It includes photographs that Picasso took and several that were taken of him.
The Pace show is called "Picasso & Jacqueline: The Evolution of Style" and is about Jacqueline Roque, who Picasso married when he was 73 and she was 27. They were together for 20 years until his death, during which time he created over 400 portraits of her.
In this interview, art critic Deborah Solomon explains that it’s not a coincidence that the shows are happening at the same time. She said both galleries borrowed work from museums and other institutions and commissioned historians to produce massive catalogs in an effort to draw crowds.
Solomon said she found the Gagosian show carnivalesque and chaotic, with too many pictures about Picasso himself, posing smoking a cigar or showing his naked chest.
On the other hand, she found the Pace show beautiful and coherent. Solomon explained Picasso had a good relationship with Roque and didn’t disfigure her in his work as he did with his previous wife Olga Khokhlova and lover Dora Maar, for example. “They were very devoted to each other and there are many beautiful paintings that resulted from their partnership,” she said.
Solomon said neither show is as good as the one currently at the Metropolitan Museum, though, which features several of Picasso's paintings in a Cubism exhibit from the collection of cosmetics businessman Leonard Lauder.
“The Lauder show at the Met is a must-see show,” she said. Solomon explained the exhibit is particularly interesting because it features Picasso’s early cubist work, and includes pieces from three of his contemporaries.
But galleries are free, points out Solomon. “They provide an incredible cultural perk to the life of New York City and what is interesting is that now many galleries are doing museum-quality shows,” she said.
Between going to a museum and paying admission, or going to a show at a gallery for free, which one do you think is a more valuable experience and why? Join the discussion with a comment.
