As we subject ourselves to the bewitching power of the achingly beautiful Madame Canals, we find ourselves decanting a torrent of empathy for Picasso, who coveted this woman, his best friend's wife. What was initially a glance by the viewer has become a stare. Hypnotized by her unworldly beauty, we are trapped, shamefully unable to avert our gaze. Madame Canal seems to enjoy this game, and her haughty contemplation lets us know that she too is sizing us up while we admire her porcelain white skin and lustrous garments that suit her as do jewels a queen. Painted during a period of transition between Picasso's Blue and Rose Periods, this work is according to Gaya Nuño, "one of the most haughty and seductive female portraits in the history of painting, and one in which the condition of woman is elevated without recurring to lavish adornments."

Published in 1966 by the Museo Picasso in Barcelona and printed by Foto-Repro of Barcelona, this work is numbered from the edition of 60 and is hand-signed by Pablo Picasso (Malaga, 1881 - Mougins, 1973) in pencil in the lower right.

Catalogue Raisonné & COA:
Pablo Picasso Madame Ricardo Canals, from the Barcelona Suite is fully documented and referenced in the below catalogue raisonnés and texts (copies will be enclosed as added documentation with the invoices that will accompany the final sale of the work).

1. Czwiklitzer, Christopher, Picasso's Posters, Random House, 1970. Listed as plate 232 on page 341.
2. Rodrigo Luis Carlos, Picasso in his Posters, Arte Ediciones, Volume I, 1992. Listed on page 328 as plate 150.
3. Rodrigo Luis Carlos, Picasso in his Posters, Arte Ediciones, Volume III, 1992. Listed on page 1784 as plate 150.
4. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany this work

About the Framing:
Framed to museum-grade, conservation standards, Pablo Picasso Madame Ricardo Canals, from the Barcelona Suite is presented in a complementary moulding and finished with silk-wrapped mats and optical grade Plexiglas.