Grand vase aux femmes nues

Ceramics played a fundamental part in Picasso's career, from his first experiments in 1947 until his death almost thirty years later. Appreciated by the artist as a creative medium in its own right, he explored the play offered between line and form, between two and three dimensions. The present work is a remarkable example of this artistic oeuvre. The curves of the vase follow and emphasize the feminine lines of the bodies—probably inspired by the artist's then-companion Françoise Gilot—while the shade and softness of terracotta simulate the look and touch of bare skin.