Madonna (2019) by Sean Scully © Sean Scully
As an artist, there can hardly be bigger shoes to fill than those of Pablo Picasso. But, for his first show with Almine Rech gallery, Sean Scully is taking over Picassos Château de Boisgeloup in Normandy.
Next month, the Irish artist will present around a dozen new and recent works in Picassos historic studio, as well as in the adjacent dovecote, 13th-century chapel and across the sprawling lawn, as part of Celtique (26 October–17 November).
“Sean is someone who really understands and loves Picasso,” says Rech, who is married to Picassos grandson Bernard Ruiz-Picasso. Boisgeloup, now a weekend retreat for the couple, was inherited by Ruiz-Bernard in 1975 after his father, Paulo, died just two years after Picasso. “Its very much a family home, there were good times and bad times. I think this was very interesting to Sean,” Rech says.
Two new figurative paintings, both titled Madonna (2019), are due to be installed in the chapel. They are the latest canvases in a recent departure from Scullys familiar abstract works, which began with a 2016 series depicting his son Oisin. Rech explains: “Sean told me once that his son was looking at his paintings and asking why they never represented something he could understand as a young child. That, I think, was the beginning of his research into figuration.”
Familial relations permeate other works, including the tall sculpture, Coin Stack (2018), which is due to be installed in the domed dovecote behind Picassos former studio. As a child, Scully recalls his father bringing home tips and counting them in stacks on the kitchen table, hence the title. Meanwhile, paintings from Scullys acclaimed Landline series will be hung in Picassos studio.
Picasso was nearly 50 when, in June 1930, he bought the Château de Boisgeloup with Olga. There he developed his increasingly abstract style, creating some of his most sought-after works, including Le Rêve, which at $155m is his most expensive painting to be sold at auction.
According to Rech, Picasso left Boisgeloup before the Second World War broke out (Picasso and OlgaRead More – Source
