News from the art world
Picasso’s “how to draw” books
An “extraordinary collection” of sketchbooks and origami sculptures created by Pablo Picasso to teach his eldest daughter to draw has gone on display, says Dalya Alberge in The Observer. The trove was unearthed by the artist’s granddaughter, Diana, when searching for family material in storage. The books are filled with depictions of “animals, birds, clowns, acrobats, horses and doves”; Picasso sketched a “fox longing for grapes” and made “exquisite origami sculptures of birds”. The items were created for Maya Widmaier-Ruiz-Picasso, now 86, who on some pages attempted to imitate her father, and even graded his work; she gives one circus scene an approving “ten”. “It was a very moving moment,” Diana said of the find. “Not only because you’re talking about one of the greatest artists but also because it made it very human.” Picasso had been taught to draw by his father, so it was “natural” for him to do the same with his own daughter. The sketchbooks are being exhibited as part of an exhibition at the Musée Picasso in Paris.
Revamping the National Gallery
The National Gallery has unveiled plans for a “radical revamp”, says David Sanderson in The Times. For its bicentenary in 2024, the museum will rehang its collection for the first time in its 200-year history, choosing thematic juxtapositions over chronological order. The idea is to present famous works in a new light, reflecting a trend seen at other major European galleries, such as Madrid’s Reina Sofía museum. Masterpieces from different eras will be displayed together in “illuminating” ways: for instance, Caravaggio’s The Supper at Emmaus (1601) with Joseph Wright of Derby’s An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump (1768), which both use chiaroscuro effects; or Seurat’s Bathers at Ansières (1884) with Piero della Francesca’s 15th century painting The Baptism of Christ. Also marking the gallery’s birthday celebrations will be a major van Gogh exhibition, and a plan to loan some of its “national treasures” to 12 as-yet-unconfirmed museums across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.