A Woman Whispering to a Man?…Picasso Portrait Unveiled After 125 Years

Another Portrait Discovered Hidden Within the Painting
Believed to Have Been Painted Over During a Time of Financial Hardship

A mysterious portrait of a woman hidden within Pablo Picasso's artwork has been revealed after 125 years. On the 10th, CNN and other foreign media outlets reported, citing an announcement from the Courtauld Gallery in London, that art historians studying Picasso's works discovered a portrait of a woman hidden beneath the surface of one of Picasso's portraits using special technology. The work in question is an early piece by Picasso titled 'Portrait of Mateu Fern?ndez de Soto.'

This discovery was made while preparing for an exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery in London. Brushstrokes unrelated to the portrait were visible, prompting the use of infrared and X-ray technology to examine the artwork. A closer look at the images reveals the woman's hairstyle, a crouched posture, and fingers clearly visible beneath the existing painting. The Courtauld Gallery explained that the hairstyle was the 'Chignon' style popular in Paris at the time, where the hair is tied low at the back and rolled into a round shape.

Previously, this painting was created in 1901 by Picasso, depicting his friend and sculptor Mateu Fern?ndez de Soto. Art historians believe that several months before painting this portrait, Picasso had painted a woman's portrait on the same canvas and likely painted over it three to four times. Barnaby Wright, Deputy Director of the Courtauld Gallery, told CNN in an interview, "Because there were brushstrokes unrelated to the (Mateu) portrait visible in the painting, we were confident something was hidden beneath the surface, but we did not know what we would find once we started scanning."

The woman in the portrait resembles women Picasso painted in Paris around that time, but her exact identity remains unknown. Deputy Director Wright added, "She could have been Picasso's model, his lover, or a friend. We are working to uncover her identity." He further explained Picasso's reason for painting over images like this: "The biggest reason was likely that he couldn't afford new materials, but it is clear he also enjoyed the process of transforming one image into another." This artwork is scheduled to be exhibited at the Courtauld Gallery in London, UK, until May 26.