The standard serialized forms produced by the Madoura studio which Picasso used were three-dimensional ceramics whose shapes and the artist’s painted motifs generally complemented each other (Fig. 28).
Picasso also worked with cooking vessels and dishware such as pots, pans, plates and strainers made with lower-quality clay or tiles and bricks[1] –objects that were not initially intended to be used for artistic purposes. He painted narrative scenes or transformed them into figurative representations so that they ended up looking less like “ceramic” works than like three-dimensional images; in a sense, they are repurposed found objects that end up halfway between painting and polychrome sculpture.
A classification of Picasso’s “ceramics” based solely on their materials and techniques would not suffice if we consider the complexity and variety of this vast body of work, which, more than fifty years after the artist’s death, and in the absence of a catalogue raisonné of his ceramics output, still remains undocumented and inaccessible as a whole.
The ensemble of this vast and complex body of work must be known in its entirety if we are to achieve a better understanding of each one of its parts, because in the case of Picasso, all techniques, all artistic processes, and all subjects and themes relate and interact with one another.[2] Picasso’s output in ceramics compels researchers and critics to follow the artist without prejudices and not force their analysis and evaluation of his work into a system that was conceived and established prior to his artistic practice.
Large white terracotta vase, painted in reserve with blue, green and yellow oxides under partial cover. Private collection. Photo credit: Maurice Aeschimann © Succession Picasso 2020.
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