2025-03-13
On 28 February, at Sotheby's London headquarters, Pablo Picasso's 1937 canvas portrait of Marie-Thérèse Walter was sold to an unknown collector for £49,827,000 million. This made the painting the second most expensive work in Europe, after Alberto Giacometti's sculpture "L'Homme qui marche I" (translated as The Walking Man I), sold in 2010 for £58 million.
Picasso's painting has not previously appeared at any auction, belonged to the artist's estate and exceeded the estimate by £15 million. The painting depicts the artist's mistress and the mother of one of his daughters. The work was auctioned by Harry Smith, executive director and managing director of the consultancy Gurr Johns, but he declined to comment on the identity of the client for whom he bought the canvas. He commented on the purchase with these words: "The painting Marie-Thérèse is a masterpiece by Picasso. Its appeal lies in its subject, date, condition, provenance and the fact that it is so fresh on the market, having been in the family for so long. The art market has a fairly regular supply of Picasso works, but it is rare to see such a unique painting on the market as this one."