Picasso's illustrations of Paul Eluard's poem, "La Barre d'Appui", 1936


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The 1934 Drawing and its Correspondences in Picasso's Oeuvre

Picasso's illustrations of Paul Eluard's poem, "La Barre d'Appui", 1936

There are two features in the complete edition of this print from 1936 which correspond to similar features in the 1934 drawing.

La Barre d'Appui, 1936

The handprint in the lower left panel corresponds indirectly to the drawing's hidden fingerprint and the mysterious cufic inscription* in the upper right panel of the print, which is normally only visible as a detail, relates to a similar inscription written upside down within the sleeve of the figure on the right in the drawing.

Sleeve

Magical alphabets are a frequently used tool of the magician and the alchemist, and it appears very likely that these mysterious inscriptions are composed in such an alphabet.

* Noted by Alfred Barr in Picasso, "Fifty Years of His Art",1946.

© Mark Harris 1996, 1997


Related Picassos

Next Section: Themes of the 1934 Drawing



oOverview
xRelated
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