October 4, 2023

Picasso: A Cubist Commission in Brooklyn at The Met Fifth Avenue, through January 14, 2024  

“On September 14, 2023, The Met opened Picasso: A Cubist Commission in Brooklyn, the first exhibition dedicated to a captivating but lesser-known chapter in the Cubist period of Pablo Picasso (1881–1973). In 1910, while making radical formal experiments with the human figure that brought him to the brink of abstraction, the artist embarked on a decorative commission for the Brooklyn residence of artist, collector, and critic Hamilton Easter Field (1873–1922). While the commission ultimately went unrealized, it served as a catalyst for Picasso’s exploration of Cubism, as he worked, abandoned, and reworked the panels in various studios in France. In this focused exhibition, six paintings linked to the commission—a group of figure and still life compositions—will be brought together for the first time, along with related works and archival material. It provides a unique opportunity to view these canvases together in the same gallery and to consider them in relation to the architectural space for which they were originally intended.” — The Met

Installation views of Picasso: A Cubist Commission in Brooklyn, on view September 14, 2023–January 14, 2024 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Photos by Anna-Marie Kellen, courtesy of The Met   

Installation view of Picasso: A Cubist Commission in Brooklyn, on view September 14, 2023–January 14, 2024 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Photo by Anna-Marie Kellen, courtesy of The Met
Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973) Man with a Guitar, 1911, reworked in 1913 Oil on canvas 60 5/8 × 30 1/2 in. (154 × 77.5 cm) Musée National Picasso-Paris, Gift of Pablo Picasso Estate, 1979 (MP34) © 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973) Man with a Mandolin, 1911 Oil on canvas 63 3/4 × 27 15/16 in. (162 × 71 cm) Musée National Picasso-Paris, Gift of Pablo Picasso Estate, 1979 (MP35) © 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Installation view of Picasso: A Cubist Commission in Brooklyn, on view September 14, 2023–January 14, 2024 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Photo by Anna-Marie Kellen, courtesy of The Met.
Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973) Pipe Rack and Still Life on a Table, summer 1911 Oil and charcoal on canvas 19 1/2 × 50 in. (49.5 × 127 cm), irregular 20 × 50 1∕4 in. (50.8 × 127.6 cm), mounted The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, The Mr. and Mrs. Klaus G. Perls Collection, 1997 (1997.149.6) © 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973) Still Life on a Piano, 1911-1912 Oil and charcoal on canvas 19 11/16 × 51 3/16 in. (50 × 130 cm) Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Nationalgalerie, Museum Berggruen © 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973) Nude Woman, 1910 Oil on canvas 73 3/4 × 24 in. (187.3 × 61 cm) National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund, 1972.46.1 © 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973) Reclining Woman on a Sofa, 1910 Oil on canvas 19 15∕16 × 51 in. (49 × 129.5 cm) Private Collection © 2023 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

“As the first-ever exhibition to focus on Picasso’s commission for Hamilton Easter Field, this show will uncover an important chapter in Picasso’s radical Cubist idiom and afford us a fresh angle on the artist’s transcendent work,” said Max Hollein, the Museum’s Marina Kellen French Director and CEO. “The Met is uniquely positioned to present revelatory projects such as this because of the innovative research produced at the Leonard A. Lauder Research Center for Modern Art, our vibrant hub for scholarship on modern art in general and Cubism in particular, now in its 10th year of existence.”

The exhibition is organized by Anna Jozefacka, guest curator, with Lauren Rosati, Associate Curator in the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art and Research Projects Manager in the Leonard A. Lauder Research Center for Modern Art at The Met.

Images courtesy The Metropolitan Museum of Art.