Bidspirit auction | PICASSO PABLO: (1881-1973) A profusion

PICASSO PABLO: (1881-1973) A profusion of flowers for Picasso’s friend and patron - PICASSO PABLO: (1881-1973) Spanish painter, a co-founder of the Cubist movement. A delightful illustrated A.L.S., Picasso , one page, slim folio (approximately 10.5 x 39 cm), n.p., 12th March 1918, to [Eugenia Errázuriz] ( ´Ma chere amie´ ), in French. To the upper half of the unusual sheet of stationery Picasso writes a brief letter to his friend, ´Pas de chance vous avoir manqué ainsi mais je espère (sic) vous voir bientôt. Mille amitiés de votre ami´ (Translation: ´It’s a shame I missed you like that, but I hope to see you soon. Best wishes from your friend´ ). The entire lower half of the letter, and the margins of the upper half, have been charmingly decorated by Picasso with a profusion of small, stylised watercolour flowers in red, blue and ochre, their delicate green stems and leaves forming a colourful floral pattern. The profuse and spontaneous decoration transforms Picasso's brief communication into a particularly charming and highly personal pictorial letter. One small stain to the lower right edge and a small, neat split to the right edge of one fold, otherwise VG Eugenia Huici de Errázuriz (1860-1951) Chilean patron of the arts and influential arbiter of taste who became a close friend and important supporter of Picasso during World War I. A prominent figure in European artistic society, she counted John Singer Sargent, Igor Stravinsky, Sergei Diaghilev, Jean Cocteau and Blaise Cendrars amongst her friends and protégés. Picasso became particularly attached to Errázuriz, whose friendship and patronage helped introduce him to a wealthy international circle of collectors and dealers; their relationship was sufficiently close for the artist's biographer John Richardson to describe her as ´Picasso's Other Mother´. The present letter dates from a particularly significant year in Picasso's personal and artistic life. Four months later, on 12th July 1918, he married the Ballets Russes dancer Olga Khokhlova. Errázuriz was invited to the wedding and, later that summer, the newlyweds travelled to Biarritz, where they spent their honeymoon as her guests at La Mimoseraie. Picasso worked extensively during his stay and decorated parts of his friend's villa. Provenance: Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity issued by the Comité Picasso, signed by both Paloma Ruiz-Picasso and Diana Widmaier-Ruiz-Picasso, Paris, 17th September 2025.