Head of a Woman (Fernande Olivier)

Although he worked primarily in painting, Pablo Picasso is also celebrated for his sculptures, ceramics, and works in other media. He was one of the originators of Cubism, along with Georges Braque, but during his long life, Picasso worked in numerous styles, each of which was highly influential on his contemporaries.

Fernande Olivier lived with Picasso from 1904 to 1911. The artist made this bust early during that time, in what is known as his "Rose Period," when he produced a small number of sculptures. The terra-cotta model for the work was probably made a few years before it was cast in bronze under the auspices of the artist's dealer, Ambroise Vollard. The AMAM sculpture is one of this early set of casts, signed by the artist; subsequent unsigned casts were made in 1959.

The work is evidence of Picasso's interest in mass and form. The depiction is asymmetrical, with the sitter's proper left side more fully finished; her right eye is only lightly outlined. In 1907, Picasso explored the treatment of women-and asymmetry in their depictions-more fully in his seminal Demoiselles d'Avignon painting. By 1908, the artist had moved into his early Cubist phase that would last until the 1920s. He created another cubist sculptural portrait of Fernande in 1909, which exists in numerous bronze versions.

The AMAM collection contains over forty works by Picasso; in addition to numerous prints, the present sculpture, and two paintings, there are four drawings represented.