PICASSO, Pablo (1881-1973)

PICASSO, Pablo (1881-1973)

Autograph letter signed « Your Picasso » to Max Pellequer
« La Californie », Cannes, 6 Oct. 1956, 1 p. in-4° in colored oil pastels
Watermark: ‘André Chotel Paris – A.M.C’
Traces of pastel transfer revealing a hasty fold by Picasso for mailing.
Fold marks

PICASSO OR EPISTOLARY ART

« I am always thinking of you »

Spectacular and moving letter from the master to his friend Max, written in two shades of blue and green soft pastels

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« Mon cher Max,
Je pense toujours à vous
Nous pensons toujours à vous
Nous ne vous oublions pas.
Nous sommes tous ensemble bien tristes. On vous aime.
Je vous envoie ci-joint un chèque pour là vous voudrez bien le mettre à mon compte et me faire envoyer un reçu.
Amitiés de nous en vous embrassant.
Votre Picasso »

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Settled at “La Californie” on the heights of Cannes, Picasso enjoyed the assistance of his secretary, Jaume Sabartés, for composing most of his correspondence. Max Pellequer, a close friend of the painter, was nevertheless among the rare privileged recipients of letters entirely written by Picasso himself. With soft pastels in hand, the artist plays with his vigorous and expansive handwriting, alternating colors—here blue and green—as graphic elements that interact and harmonize elegantly within the space of the page. This letter reveals a measure of tenderness and disappointment that Picasso almost never discloses. He segments his text by color: dark green for expressions of affection, light green for administrative passages, creating a subtle visual dialogue between emotion and duty.

A banker and discerning art collector, Max Pellequer began assembling a considerable collection of modernist works in the 1920s. In 1920, he married Francine Level, niece of the dealer and businessman André Level. It was through André Level that he first met Picasso in 1914, forging an enduring friendship. Pellequer became one of the artist’s closest friends, as well as his banker and financial advisor. Over more than thirty years, he acquired from the master a remarkable collection of paintings and sculptures.