Pablo Picasso La Cerámica, Grabar al agua fuerte, Los Litógrafos

A remarkable image of a beautiful and mysterious woman, this piece maintains the stunningly saturated black engobe printing and pristine markings on the reverse. Picasso's use of sharp, jagged lines incised into a ceramic medium conveys incredible detail, exemplifying Picasso's extraordinary mastery of the medium.

The engobe decoration on this white earthenware clay pitcher recalls the intricate surfaces of Picasso's late etchings. Using all-over pattern and negative space, the artist creates a woman out of what, in another's hands, would have remained a vase.

Full of action and capturing the energy and emotion of an arena during a mid-summer's day, this is one of Picasso's best prints representative of one of his all-time favorite subjects: bullfighting. Offering us an aerial view of the exciting events below, Picasso utilizes vivid colors and swirling strokes to further convey the sense of anticipation and chaos that goes hand in hand with such an event.

Conveying a strong sense of texture and linear detail, this unusual image demonstrates Picasso's mastery of this medium. Both the depth and width of each incision play a crucial role in conveying the image; patches of black appear smooth while thin lines convey subtle detail and thick, deep incisions boldly outline the subjects.

One of Picasso's most exquisite ceramics, Woman is a striking reflection of the female form. From the delicate engobe application to the shape of the pitcher that represents the curve of the female body to the striped glazed interior, Picasso leaves out no detail in capturing the beauty of his subject.

One of only a handful of Blue Period works that Picasso authorized to be printed during his lifetime, this piece is one of the best examples of Picasso's ability to extract emotion from the viewer. Using a predominance of blue that expresses the distress and sorrow of the subjects, Picasso transforms the viewing experience from one of passive speculation to passionate suffering on behalf of the subjects.

Somewhat hieroglyphic in nature, this depiction of Picasso's second wife Jacqueline conveys her as strikingly beautiful; with decorative hair, large eyes, and triangular nose, she brings to mind an Egyptian pharaoh. Picasso's dark brown lines pop against the glossy ivory background, further highlighting Jacqueline's iconic profile.

This exquisite pitcher boasts simple, linear decoration and cool color contrasts between grey, white, and black. Picasso addresses the coexistence of man and animal, placing human faces alongside an owl in this absolutely stunning work.

With Bouquet à la pomme, Picasso has created a still life that captures his characteristic draftsmanship and innate graphic sensibility. The balance of curved and diagonal lines, along with the variations in tone from ivory to green, make this a highly desirable ceramic.

Particularly cherished by those familiar and enamored with the sport of football, this vibrant piece captures the spirit of the game as seven competitors dive towards the ball. Picasso's ability to convey more through less is conveyed through this action-packed work, as his seamless lines and simple figures relay a thorough scene of an exciting football game.

With minimal description, Picasso gives life to a scene of abandon. Starkly conveyed in white, the two central figures dance joyfully to the music of the diaulos. Though lacking in color, Picasso's raised lines speak for themselves when conveying a sense of joy and animation within this work.

Passionately expressive, technically detailed, and beautifully finished in natural white earthenware clay, this is a remarkable piece in excellent condition. Picasso's intricate lines convey a sense of animation and chaos, appropriate for his depiction of a wily faun.

In this pure and simple graphic work, Picasso highlights the flatness of the linoleum and of the page. With just a gouging tool and a single color, he renders the bullfight in a highly stylized manner reminiscent of early cave paintings.

Unique and complicated in form and reflective of Picasso's signature style, this beautifully decorated ceramic is a marvelous work. The name, Owl Woman is likely inspired by the shape of the vase, as it was used in three other known ceramics that were painted as owl forms. The Owl Woman is the only piece that deviates from the standard owl decoration, making it a very intriguing work.

Conveying an optical, almost Southwestern feel, this piece, though depicted in cool lapis lazuli blues, is reminiscent of the sun. With its lively rays shining out from a central face, this piece adds a sense of warmth and energy to its surroundings.

One of his most joyful ceramic faces, this piece welcomes us in with open arms. Picasso utilizes imagery reminiscent of the sun and the earth to create a piece that emanates with a sense of warmth and abundance.

Somewhat hieroglyphic in nature, this depiction of Picasso's second wife Jacqueline conveys her as strikingly beautiful; with decorative hair, large eyes, and triangular nose, she brings to mind an Egyptian pharaoh. Picasso's ivory lines pop against the rich black-brown background, further highlighting Jacqueline's iconic profile.

Passionately expressive, technically detailed, and beautifully finished with a delicate glaze, this remarkable work is instilled with a sense of joy and liveliness as Picasso's characters rejoice to the melodic sound of the flute.

The Picador was a theme commonly used during this era of ceramic-making for Picasso. Inspired by his rich Spanish heritage, this plate echoes the shape of a typical bull-fighting arena, centralizing the viewers' attention to the Picador, armed with a great sheath atop his steady horse.

This woman with a crown of flowers epitomizes Picasso's mastery of the cubist style in a sculptural medium. With extensive, detailed lines, Picasso depicts a beautiful woman with a heart-shaped face that simultaneously conveys frontal and profile views of its subject.

This monumental work is the quintessential example of Picasso's abstract figurative style. Two elegant human forms simultaneously merge and converge, leaving the image open to individual interpretation. Sure to command the attention of a room, this piece draws us in with its large scale, glossy finish, and balanced composition.

Conveying a sense of family and togetherness, this eye-catching piece is notable for its use of color contrast and sharp, jagged lines. Rather than using just one plate, Picasso utilizes two plates to create this striking print: the central plate depicting the family of four and the outer plate that frames it, further contributing to the private, portrait-style feel of the work.

Conveying the complexity of a family dynamic through simplicity of line and form, this exquisite print exemplifies Picasso's skill at capturing human expression. Picasso chooses to devote equal amounts of emotion and energy to each saltimbanque, nearly equating this piece to four works of portraiture within an all-encompassing familial scene.

Fantastically bold and vibrant, this stunning piece is exemplary of Picasso's innovative use of color composition and expressive lines and brush strokes. It is exquisitely balanced in form and geometry, but also evokes the summer calm and peacefulness that we would likely experience at an atelier in sunny California.

This marvelously large work is executed in a unique painterly style with fine attention to detail and artistic stylization. This beautiful piece contains many elements typical of Picasso's style: the abstracted profile/ frontal face, the use of cool blue hues, and the subject of artist at work.

Capturing the essence of Picasso's prolific and revolutionary Cubist period in the early 1900's, this piece perfectly exemplifies his fragmented and abstracted take on the still life genre. Geometric shapes and sharp lines define this obscured image of a bottle of rum. This is a truly groundbreaking and magnificent work, whose large scale and grandeur makes this a quintessential Picasso for any art collection.

From his brief Post-Impressionist period, this piece is one of only a few works that Picasso conveyed in this style. Picasso utilizes the brush in an energetic layering of pure hues to create a vibrant scene full of motion and activity. He uses a wide range of colors, toying with shadow and light to create his dwarf dancer.

Relaying a sense of calm and quiet, this piece perfectly combines Picasso's defined geometric forms with soft, swirling strokes. Picasso utilizes a somewhat unconventional color palette of cool periwinkle blues and pastel oranges and greens, differentiating this beautiful still life from his other works and making it a prized addition to any collection.

Noteworthy for its incredible textural and color contrasts, Picasso utilizes blocks of black against intricately incised clay to convey this abstract figure. The woman's fluffy black hair appears smooth and sleek when placed against the more jagged surfaces of the background and the woman's face.

This incredibly detailed piece is noteworthy for its intricate line work. Picasso's calculated use of cross hatched lines adds a sense of depth and shadow to the woman's face and contributes a textural quality to this extraordinary work.

An extremely rare print, this image of Jacqueline Roque, Picasso's second wife, clearly displays Picasso's mastery of portraiture. Through his use of line and shadow, Picasso creates a rich, velvety impression that delicately conveys Jacqueline's features and expression - one of absolute happiness. This piece is heralded as one of Picasso's tour-de-force prints due to this meticulous attention to detail that he exhibited while portraying his wife.

Picasso's extraordinary ability to convey an image through the use of continuous lines is exemplified perfectly in this delightful linocut. Despite the initial simplicity of this piece, the image is filled with details that become apparent upon further inspection such as the animated figures holidng hands and the two comical faces in the lower corners.

Conveyed through the use of elegant, smooth lines, this piece exemplifies Picasso's ability to bring animation and life to even the most basic of images - letters. Juxtaposing white lines against a rich brown background, each character appears as if instilled with a sense of personality, dancing across the composition, much to the viewer's delight.

One of three original works by Pablo Picasso commissioned especially for the text Le Siege de Jerusalem by Max Jacob, this interesting piece wonderfully exemplifies Picasso's Cubist style. This still life includes unusual elements that engage us and leave us searching for a connection: a skull, wood, and a piece of paper with writing on it all find their place in this harmoniously composed work.

In this stunning minimal work, Picasso reduces the general form to its most basic and expressive state. The crisp white surface allows us to focus on the silhouette of the figure, which appears as if subtly in motion. Picasso here proves that the phrase "less is more" has validity, for he achieves a great sense of depth and emotion through elegant simplicity.

Exemplifying the duality between man and beast, Picasso here depicts the face of the man and the body of an owl on opposing sides of a large vase. Picasso depicts the figures of both owl and man in a similarly minimalist manner, coloring them in a glossy white against a matte lavender background. We get the sense that Picasso is hinting at the similarities between both living creatures and, by doing so, encouraging harmonious co-existence between all living beings.

In this stunning minimal work, Picasso reduces the general form to its most basic and expressive state. The crisp white surface allows us to focus on the silhouette of the figure, which appears as if subtly in motion. Picasso here proves that the phrase "less is more" has validity, for he achieves a great sense of depth and emotion through elegant simplicity.

Utilizing both incised lines and stamped images, Picasso creates a smiling, slightly quirky face. Picasso's simple, clean-cut lines delineate the basic image while his stamps add more detailed components. Though he offers us a more literal translation by stamping the eyes with an eye shaped stamp, Picasso also utilizes this eye stamp to create his subject's mouth, mixing and matching facial components and giving them new definitions in the process.

Passionately expressive, technically detailed, and beautifully finished with a brilliantly bold, sienna glaze, this remarkable piece is a unique color variant. Its exquisite sienna and cream coloration finished with a glossy sheen truly makes this piece one of a kind.

Exemplifying his fascination with mystical creatures, Picasso here depicts one of his favorite subjects: a centaur. He uses minimal detail to convey this fantastical creature, conveying his subject through clean cut lines and surrounding him in a decorative border with hints of white.

Grand in size with a striking color palette, this curious pitcher exhibits a face with exaggerated facial characteristics. The brown "points" of the face suggest a beard while overtly large eyebrows, eyes, and nose gaze out at the viewer. Perhaps the most intriguing element of this piece is Picasso's ability to manipulate the facial qualities to fit the natural shape of the pitcher so that, when viewed from the side, the pitcher appears as the facial profile of a bearded man.

This shimmering piece is a unique color variant, a brilliant hue of brown-black with a magnificent glossy surface that transforms in color, depending on the effects of light and shadow. While this work itself is a ceramic dish, Picasso creates a border that appears as a serving platter, as if this spoon and cup were being served to us on a plate.

Referencing Classical imagery, Picasso's figures appear as turbaned subjects dancing around a glowing fire. This beautiful work evokes a very Mediterranean sentiment both in subject and form, as Picasso chooses to create majestic figures in sculpted poses.

Exuding a sense of joyous frenetic energy, this bold and bright work plays with our notion of what is functional and what is art. Picasso utilizes the simplistic design motifs frequently found in his ceramics to convey three figures throwing themselves wholeheartedly into a rapturous moment of dance.

Reminiscent of an African mask, this striking ceramic, with its unusual shape and wide-eyed expressive imagery, appears totemic in nature. Deep grooves and bold lines relay a tribal feel, as if this ceramic could have been used in a ceremonial celebration.

Inspired by Greek mythology, Picasso here creates the visage of a faun on the face of an elegant pitcher. The faun appears somewhat mysterious with his whimsical curls and flushed cheeks, translated not with color but with the manipulation of clay with the edge of a knife, providing a sense of texture rather than color to convey facial features.

With its bold black lines and striking chestnut coloration, this charming yan pitcher instantly captures our eye. This piece is filled with subtle details, such as the tip of white on the bird's beak and the white tuft on its chest. Furthermore, the shape of the bird naturally mimics the shape of the pitcher with its beak at the spout and its wings resting at its sides.

This animated caricature comes to life in this delightful pitcher. Notable for its intriguing shape, this seized handled pitcher echoes the natural form of its subject. The decorative engobe detail adds bold coloration, giving this piece a whimsical energy and humorous likeness to a real creature.

Cleverly composed and instilled with a sense of mystical charm, this ceramic perfectly complements the elegant U-shaped curve of it subject - a mermaid prow figure. Picasso pays close attention to detail, utilizing zig-zagging etched scales on the fin with subtle dot details to convey the mermaid's lower half.

Using simple clean cut lines and a monochromatic white hue, Picasso references the romantic French countryside. Though absent of color, we can almost imagine ourselves transported to this peaceful scene, where a blissful flute player performs for the agile cavaliers galloping around on horseback in the distance.

This engaging piece is striking in that it relays the illusion of near life-size hands holding a fish upon a platter. The fish, intricately depicted in hues of brown, green, and blue, is helpless in the hands of the human, who retains sole power over his prey. Picasso exemplifies his mastery of engobe design, accentuating this piece with a sense of texture that breathes life and movement into the piece when viewed under light.

Harkening to Picasso's life in southern France during this fruitful period of his ceramic making, this piece radiates a sense of warmth and joy. Hypnotic spirals reminiscent of the sun draw us in, engaging us with their decorative touches and adding a quaint charm to this stunning piece.

This set of four tiles works delightfully as a set, yet each image retains its own charm. Picasso's attention to detail is clear as he evokes the whimsical images of a sun, geometric faces, and a dancer and hind. Placed against a minimal red clay background, we are able to further appreciate this attention to detail achieved through line and form.

Noteworthy for its resemblance to an actual fish, the fluted shape of this pitcher echoes that of a real fish, as the spout narrows to form the nose and the opening fans outward to form the tail. The handle serves as a dorsal while the wide-eyed fish himself smiles out at us in an expressive gesture, making this work a charming addition to any collection.