Picasso Prints: Natural History, Part 3

+ JMJ +

From Culture 24 (UK):

Here are more of Pablo Picasso's delicate black and white prints, showing images of animals etched onto plates during the 1930s and 1940s.

L'Atruche / The Ostrich, 1936/1942
Aquatint and Drypoint Etching by Pablo Picasso
Watermarked "Ambroise" in Lower Margin

Inspired by a book on natural history written in 1749 by Comte de Buffon, the plates were commissioned by a French publisher to provide illustrations for the work.

La Langouste / The Crayfish, 1936 / 1942
Aquatint and Drypoint Etching by Pablo Picasso
Watermarked "Vollard"

Picasso selected 31 animals described in the book and etched them, from his mind's eye, using a process known as aquatint.



Le Vautour / The Vulture, 1936
Original Sugar-lift Aquatint by Pablo Picasso



Le Crapaud / The Toad, 1936/1942
Aquatint and Drypoint Etching by Pablo Picasso
Watermarked "Vollard" in Lower Margin

The results, while not taken from real life, are both incredibly detailed and attractive evocations.

L'Ane / The Donkey, 1942
Etching by Pablo Picasso



Le Coq / The Rooster, 1936 / 1942
Aquatint and Drypoint Etching by Pablo Picasso


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Click here to see Part 2 of this post.

Picasso Prints: Natural History, Part 2

+ JMJ +

From Greg Kucera Gallery:

Here are more of the prints Picasso created to accompany the Natural History text of George-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon.



L'Abeille, 1942
Etching by Pablo Picasso
 

Employing aquatint and sugar-lift, the prints were done spontaneously and quickly, completed in just one month.



La Guepe, 1942
Etching by Pablo Picasso

The Buffon etchings are playful and humorous, drawn not from life, but from Picasso's memories as a child seeing animals on the farm and in the circus.



Le Papillon / The Butterfly, 1942
Etching by Pablo Picasso

His initial prints were drypoints, where his line was simply scratched into a metal plate.

L'Araignée / The , 1936
Original Sugar-lift Aquatint by Pablo Picasso

He worked with several considerable master printers who encouraged him, taught him and challenged him to make ever more complex prints.



La Sauterelle / The Grasshopper, 1942
Etching by Pablo Picasso

As his ability grew, so did his curiosity about prints that engaged mass as well as simple line, color in addition to black and white, and a broader scope of size and scale.

These etchings have often been interpreted as subtle projections of the artist's enigmatic personality .... his staunch attention to detail (for example) finds an outlet in the intricate detail of the grasshopper. (Source)


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Click here to see Part 3 of this post.