THE COLLECTION
Glass of Absinthe
Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973)
Paris, spring 1914. Painted bronze with absinthe spoon, 8 1/2 x 6 1/2 x 3 3/8" (21.6 x 16.4 x 8.5 cm), diameter at base 2 1/2" (6.4 cm). Gift of Louise Reinhardt Smith. © 2009 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
292.1956
Focus: Picasso Sculpture
July 3–November 3, 2008
Picasso cast six bronze copies of Glass of Absinthe from a plaster original and decorated each of them uniquely. Here he broke new ground by incorporating an existing object into his sculpture: a real absinthe spoon nestles between the modeled bronze sugar cube and glass. (Absinthe is prepared by pouring the brilliant green liquid through a sugar cube resting on a slotted spoon like the one seen here.) Picasso spoke of his desire to explore different modes of representation: "I was interested in the relation between the real spoon and the modeled glass. In the way they clashed with each other."
In 1914, with France on the brink of war, absinthe was a subject of fierce debate. It was prohibited in early 1915 as a threat to French health and moral vigor. Picasso's sculpture can be seen as a tiny monument to a disappearing bohemian culture.
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