Minotaure Contemplant Une Dormeuse (Bloch 261)
In this 1933 etching with drypoint, Picasso presents a mythological encounter between a contemplative minotaur and a sleeping female figure, employing the artist's characteristic exploratory line work to convey psychological tension between the two subjects. The composition, printed as a proof apart from the edition of 32 by master printer Frélaut and published by Galerie Louise Leiris in Paris, demonstrates Picasso's sustained engagement with classical mythology as a vehicle for exploring desire, vulnerability, and the beast within civilized humanity. The work's substantial size and technical refinement underscore the significance Picasso attributed to this subject matter during the early 1930s, a period marked by increasingly complex investigations of the human figure and its symbolic potential.
- Medium
- Etching with drypoint, 1933, signed in pencil, a proof aside from the edition of 32, printed by Frélaut, published by Galerie Louise Leiris, Paris, on laid paper, with full margins, sheet 416 x 534mm (16 3/8 x 21in), This lot has been imported from outside the United Kingdom to be sold at auction under temporary importation, and therefore the buyer must pay the import VAT at a rate of 5%. On proof of export outside the United Kingdom this duty can be refunded., Condition, Related Lots, BACK TO A
- Spotted At
- Auction House · Forum Auctions
🔨 Auction Lot
Prints & Works on Paper 1500-2026
March 31, 2026
Lot 244
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