The Discovery of The 1934 Drawing


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In the 1970's, a London junk dealer was commissioned to clear the effects of a deceased Polish woman from a flat in Ealing. The property had been ransacked, among the remaining possessions he found five ink drawings, a bag of loose rubies and a diamond bracelet. He also found lots of theatrical memorabilia and concluded from this that the woman may have once been a dancer or an actress in the theatre.

The junk dealer kept the five drawings for a number of years, then in the 1980's, he sold them to a picture dealer from Brighton who disposed of four of the drawings to persons unknown. From the description of the four missing drawings it appears they may have been side panels to the present drawing.

In the spring of 1991, the picture dealer sold the remaining drawing to a Brighton dealer who consulted me for an opinion. I examined the it and decided that it might be by Picasso. We then showed it to Christie's, who concluded that it was by "a very close friend of Picasso."

Subsequent researches indicate almost beyond doubt that the drawing is an important, previously unknown work by Pablo Picasso. The identify of the original owner remains a mystery. The junk dealer could not recollect the year of the house clearance or the woman's address and despite extensive enquiries we still do not know her identity.

© Mark Harris 1996


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xOverview
oRelated
oThemes
oSymbolism
oAlchemy
oInterpretations
oPoster Offer
oAppeals
oMiscellaneous
oIndex


© Mark Harris 1996 (content), Simon Banton 1996 (design)

In general copyright of works by Pablo Picasso are the property of the heirs to the Pablo Picasso estate