After Pablo Ruiz Picasso

After PABLO RUIZ PICASSO (Málaga, 1881 – Mougins, France, 1973).
Untitled, from “Suite 156.”
Signed and dated on the plate.
Numbered in pencil.
Shows signs of wear and some stains and creases.
Measurements: 41 x 47.5 cm; 60 x 66 cm (frame).

This series consists of a collection of one hundred fifty-six prints derived from an equal number of copper plates that Picasso engraved when he was over ninety years old. His advanced age is evident in the works through an iconography that consistently depicts an elderly Picasso. The prints do not form a cohesive whole, but they all share a retrospective look at his life and work, as well as a nod to the artist’s visual memory. This is why themes such as the circus—which Picasso frequented in his youth—the female nude, with images of brothels, and his debt to painters he admired are evident.

The creation of Suite 156 unfolded in three phases. From January through May 25, 1970, Picasso engraved more than fifty copper plates. In the second phase, between February 25 and June 16 of the following year, he produced nearly a hundred plates, including thirty-eight dedicated to the image of Degas. Finally, in March 1972, he produced three more copper plates, two of which were for Suite 156. Fifty numbered copies of this series, printed in its entirety by the brothers Piero and Aldo Crommelynck, were produced. The only three complete sets of Suite 156 in existence are held by the Musée Picasso in Paris, a private collection, and the Fundación Bancaixa.