This exquisite lithograph by Pablo Picasso (1881–1973), titled La Petite Corrida (The Little Bullfight), from the album Special issue of the XX Siecle Review, Hommage a Picasso, originates from the 1971 edition published by Tudor Publishing Co., New York, in collaboration with Societe Internationale d'Art XXe siecle, Paris, under the direction of Gualtieri di San Lazzaro, editeur, Paris, and printed by Mourlot Freres, Paris. La Petite Corrida reflects Picasso’s lifelong fascination with the bullfight—a subject that symbolized vitality, struggle, and creation throughout his career. Executed with the spontaneity and graphic brilliance characteristic of his late lithographs, the composition captures both movement and ritual, merging ancient spectacle with modern energy.
Executed as a lithograph on velin paper, this work measures 12.5 × 9.75 inches (31.75 × 24.77 cm). Signed in the plate and unnumbered as issued. The edition exemplifies the superb craftsmanship of Mourlot Freres, Paris, the atelier that produced many of Picasso’s greatest lithographic works.
Artwork Details:
Artist: Pablo Picasso (1881–1973)
Title: La Petite Corrida (The Little Bullfight), from the album Hommage a Picasso, 1971
Medium: Lithograph on velin paper
Dimensions: 12.5 × 9.75 inches (31.75 × 24.77 cm)
Inscription: Signed in the plate and unnumbered as issued
Date: 1971
Publisher: Tudor Publishing Co., New York, in collaboration with Societe Internationale d'Art XXe siecle, Paris
Printer: Mourlot Freres, Paris
Catalogue raisonne references: Catalogue de L’oeuvre Grave et Lithographie, Pablo Picasso: Catalogue of the Printed Graphic Work. Editions Kornfeld, 1967, illustration 839. Goeppert, Sebastian, et al. Pablo Picasso, the Illustrated Books: Catalogue Raisonne. Patrick Cramer, 1983, illustration 92. Picasso, Pablo, and Fernand Mourlot. Picasso Lithographs, Translated by Jean Didry, Boston Book and Art Publisher, 1970, illustration 302.
Condition: Well preserved, consistent with age and medium
Provenance: From the album Hommage a Picasso, published 1971 by Tudor Publishing Co. and Societe Internationale d'Art XXe siecle, Paris
About the Publication:
Gualtieri di San Lazzaro’s XXe Siecle (Twentieth Century) was one of the most influential art journals of the modern era, founded in Paris in 1938 as a platform for the greatest painters, sculptors, and writers of the 20th century. San Lazzaro—a visionary editor, critic, and champion of modernism—believed that art and literature should coexist as expressions of a shared human imagination. Under his direction, XXe Siecle became a cultural bridge between Europe and the wider world, publishing special issues devoted to leading figures such as Picasso, Matisse, Chagall, Braque, Calder, Miro, Kandinsky, and Leger. Each edition combined essays by renowned critics and poets with original lithographs printed by the foremost ateliers of Paris, including Mourlot, Arte, and Bellini, creating a uniquely rich dialogue between text and image. Through XXe Siecle, San Lazzaro preserved the creative spirit of the avant-garde during and after World War II, championing freedom of expression and the evolution of abstraction, Surrealism, and modern thought. Over nearly four decades, the journal shaped international taste and defined the intellectual landscape of postwar art publishing. Today, XXe Siecle remains celebrated for its extraordinary synthesis of art, literature, and design—an enduring testament to Gualtieri di San Lazzaro’s belief that the visual arts are the soul of the modern age.
About the Artist:
Pablo Picasso (1881–1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, and ceramicist whose extraordinary vision revolutionized modern art and defined the visual language of the 20th century. A child prodigy from Malaga, Spain, Picasso’s career spanned more than seven decades and encompassed an astonishing range of styles and innovations—from the melancholic Blue and romantic Rose periods to his pioneering invention of Cubism with Georges Braque, which shattered conventional notions of perspective and form. Influenced by the bold expressiveness of El Greco, the structure of Cezanne, and the vitality of African and Iberian sculpture, Picasso became a central figure of the Paris avant-garde, working in creative dialogue with contemporaries such as Henri Matisse, Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro, Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray. His insatiable experimentation extended across painting, drawing, printmaking, ceramics, and sculpture, forever expanding the boundaries of artistic expression. A master of reinvention, Picasso profoundly shaped generations of artists who followed—from Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, David Hockney, and Jean-Michel Basquiat to Jeff Koons and Banksy—cementing his status as a timeless cultural icon whose works remain among the most sought after worldwide. His landmark painting Les Femmes d’Alger (Version “O”) achieved a record-breaking sale of $179,365,000 at Christie’s, New York, on May 11, 2015, affirming Picasso’s enduring legacy as one of the most influential and valuable artists in history.
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Picasso bullfight lithograph...