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Head of Jester Bronze Sculpture after Pablo Picasso

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:8,500.00 USD Estimated At:17,000.00 - 21,250.00 USD
Head of Jester Bronze Sculpture after Pablo Picasso
Head of Jester bronze sculpture bust with black patina after Pablo Picasso is said to be only one of 10 from the last cast of the retired mold after Head of Jester, elsewhere known as "Le Fou."  'Picasso' (on the back) from the cast. The original is listed in Picasso, The Sculpture Catalogue Raisonne by Werner Spies R4Title: Head of JesterArtist: PicassoMedium: Cooper/Tin alloy (unknown ratio) black patinaDate: Circa 1978Cast: 4th/FinalSignature: Picasso, back of sculpture - from the mold Published by FEMWeight: 37 lbs.Dimensions: 18" (height) x 10" (depth) x 16" (wide)Condition: Excellent*The bust that is offered is not from the original cast, it is from the last cast of the last mold from FEM.Biography Picasso's fascination with the life of the circus performer; a world characterized by artifice, decoration, masks and costumes. The present work symbolizes a shift for Picasso from the Blue to the Rose period and marks a new chapter of iconography for the artist. Werner Spies discusses the creation of the original work, inspired by Picasso's close friend, the writer Max Jacob, as "nothing less than the description of a costuming, the transformation of a portrait of Max Jacob into an allegory" Roland Penrose also describes the birth of the original sculpture as "It was begun late one evening after returning home from the circus with Max Jacob. The clay rapidly took on the appearance of his friend, but the next day he continued to work on it and only the lower part of the face retained the likeness. The jester's cap was added as the head changed its personality" The theme of the Jester's cap and the "crown" played an important role in the work of Picasso during this period. Spies examines Picasso's fascination with this device as he make clear that "Picasso uses the cap not merely as an attribute for particular figures, but as an autonomous, visually enlivening accessory. He is clearly attracted by the geometric structure of the cap, a large triangle surrounded by lower, smaller ones; in many pictures it appears as an echo of the jester's diamond-patterned costume"*Retrieved from: https://bitdazzle.com/products/365795/picasso-bronze-sculpture-head-of-jester