JESOLO.- Following a successful run with "Banksy & Friends: The Art of Rebellion," the JMuseo in Jesolo is set to host a significant exhibition dedicated to the intricate relationship between Pablo Picasso, one of the 20th century's most influential artists, and the women who shaped his life and work. Titled "LOVING PICASSO," the exhibition, opening to the public on April 19th, offers an unprecedented look into the intimate aspects of the Spanish artist's life through the lens of his connections with the female universe, a dimension that profoundly influenced both his personal experiences and his vast artistic output.

The exhibition at JMuseo delves into the complex interplay between Picasso's personal life and his creative process, asserting that women were far more than mere aesthetic subjects for the artist. Curated by Piernicola Maria Di Iorio, "Loving Picasso" navigates the multifaceted roles women played – as muses, companions, and even fellow creators – in the artist's journey, and how these relationships are vividly reflected across different phases and styles of his work.

Picasso's career was marked by numerous romantic and sentimental ties with women, each leaving a distinct imprint on his art. Figures such as Fernande Olivier, Dora Maar, Marie-Thérèse Walter, and Jacqueline Roque are prominent among his muses, frequently immortalized in his canvases, sculptures, and graphic works. These women did not just pose for him; they became symbolic figures representing key periods in his evolving creative process, their likenesses transformed and integrated into his stylistic experiments.

The exhibition highlights how Picasso’s engagement with the female form extended beyond mere portraiture or idealization. His exploration was often deeply psychological and symbolic. In many of his pieces, female figures are depicted as fragmented, distorted, or radically reinterpreted, reflecting the complexity of his perceptions surrounding love, desire, and even suffering. This innovative and sometimes startling artistic treatment, however, existed alongside relationships that were frequently characterized by dynamics of power and possessiveness. The exhibition seeks to illuminate this tension, acknowledging both his evident admiration for femininity and the often-conflicted nature of his personal interactions.

"Loving Picasso" is structured across four fundamental sections, drawing connections to key graphic series by the artist, supplemented by a selection of ceramics and works by contemporary female artists who were close to Picasso. The exhibition design aims to guide visitors through this exploration, presenting a nuanced perspective on the profound connection between the artist's affective life and his creative output.

The journey begins with the graphic series, starting with the powerful Tauromaquia or Arte de Torear from 1959. In this series, the Spanish cultural symbol of bullfighting is reinterpreted as a metaphor for seduction and struggle, reflecting the intense passion Picasso brought to his romantic relationships. The dance between the bull and the bullfighter on the canvas is presented as a ritualistic echo of the erotic tension and power dynamics that he often experienced in his interactions with women.

Following Tauromaquia, the exhibition invites the viewer Dans L'atelier de Picasso (In Picasso's Studio). This section grants access to the intimate space of artistic creation, where models and lovers are depicted as central figures, blurring the lines between the creative act and erotic experience. This part of the exhibition explores how the studio became a crucible where personal relationships directly fueled artistic production.

The third graphic section features the melancholic Suite des Saltimbanques (1905). These works transport viewers back to Picasso's Rose Period, a time when the fragile figure of Fernande Olivier significantly influenced his artistic vision. The works from this suite are populated by circus figures, often evoking a sense of transient, melancholic beauty, reflecting the emotional landscape of that specific relationship and period.

Concluding the graphic series section is the Barcelona Suite (1901-1907). This part focuses on Picasso's formative years in Barcelona, illustrating how the young artist began exploring the relationship between male and female identity. His painting from this period already demonstrates his extraordinary capacity for formal metamorphosis and his developing ability to capture the psychological essence of his subjects, laying groundwork for his later, more radical explorations of the human form.

Complementing the graphic works is a selection of Picasso's most representative ceramics, created between 1952 and 1969. Settled in Vallauris during this period, Picasso transformed the ancient art of ceramics into a field of vibrant experimentation. The female form frequently appears in these works, often rendered with a powerful, earthy sensuality, embodied in vases and plates that celebrate fertility and the vitality of the eternal feminine. These ceramics showcase a language that successfully fuses Mediterranean tradition with formal innovation.

A crucial chapter of the exhibition is dedicated to Dora Maar, the surrealist photographer and painter who was Picasso's companion during the challenging years of the Spanish Civil War and World War II. This intense period is reflected in a series of portraits where Maar's face undergoes formal deconstruction, mirroring both her complex and sometimes tormented personality and the anxieties of the era. The exhibition includes a selection of Maar's own drawings, oils, watercolors, and engraved photographs. These works not only highlight Maar's autonomous talent as an artist but also reveal the creative dialogue that existed between her and Picasso, demonstrating a mutual influence where her photographic eye and pictorial sensibility blended, anticipating many contemporary art experimentations. This section underscores that the influence between the two artists was bidirectional, each finding stimuli in the other to explore new expressive possibilities.

The presence of lithographs by Françoise Gilot constitutes another significant moment in the exhibition. Gilot was not only Picasso's lover and the mother of two of his children but also an artist who assertively maintained her creative independence. She is notably the only woman who famously chose to leave Picasso, refusing the subordinate role he often assigned to his female companions. Gilot's lithographs on display demonstrate her refined visual language and her ability to develop a personal formal vocabulary. While showing traces of her dialogue with Picasso, her work reveals a distinct vision of the world and a unique chromatic sensibility, transforming the master's influence into something entirely new and original. This section illustrates how Gilot successfully drew inspiration from her relationship with the artistic genius to forge her own autonomous path, continuing her successful artistic career well beyond the end of their relationship, demonstrating that Picasso's legacy could be engaged with and transformed creatively without overwhelming the individual artist.

The exhibition is completed by a section featuring portraits of Picasso taken by the renowned photographer Robert Capa in 1948. At this time, the sixty-seven-year-old artist was in a relationship with Françoise Gilot, living in what appeared to be a serene domestic setting on the French Riviera. Capa's immediate and psychologically insightful shots capture a playful and relaxed Picasso, shown creating art on the beach or in his studio, often surrounded by friends and family. These photographs, taken by one of the 20th century's greatest photographers, offer a glimpse into a specific moment in the artist's life when the presence of a young companion seemed to re-energize him, leading to tireless production and a renewed interest in new techniques like ceramics. Capa's images further reinforce the exhibition's central theme: that love and passion were not merely personal experiences for Picasso but acted as authentic creative engines.

"Loving Picasso" at JMuseo offers a nuanced and complex exploration of the relationship between one of art history's titans and the women in his life. It seeks to move beyond simple, uncritical celebration of Picasso's genius or retrospective judgment of his personal conduct, which may appear problematic by contemporary standards. Instead, the exhibition focuses on the extraordinary creative alchemy that arose from the encounters between a dominant artistic personality and the women who were themselves creators. It highlights a dialogue where love, passion – and at times, conflict and suffering – were transformed into works that continue to prompt reflection on the nature of human relationships and the mysterious connection between affective life and artistic creation.

Through this comprehensive presentation, visitors are invited to reflect not only on Picasso's undeniable artistic greatness but also on the fundamental contributions that the women in his life made to his work and, more broadly, to the history of 20th-century art. The exhibition strives to fully illuminate, in all its complexity, the intertwined influences that shaped Picasso's output and his place in art history.

The "Loving Picasso" exhibition is produced by the Municipality of Jesolo and organized by Piuma in collaboration with Arthemisia. It will be open to the public at the JMuseo from April 19th.