Expert: Ben Mahmoud - 2/15/2008

Question
Hi,
Picasso's Linocut "Femme dans Fauteuil",Guitar Player Seated Woman, Has that been done in a Serigraph? And if so would it possibly have a Picasso pencil signature? Or is it possible that the pencil signature is also part of the serigraph?

Answer
I cannot answer your question directly.  However, I have seen, some time ago, a catalog of all of Picasso's prints.  I have no idea where you will find this catalog.  Maybe in the print department of a large art museum.  Maybe in a very large public library.

I have determined that Picasso did do a lithograph named, "femme au Fauteuil."  He also did a painting called, "Femme dans un fauteuil."  And another painting entitled, "Jeune Femme assise dans un fauteuil."

However, I can find no evidence that he did a serigraph whose title comes close to "Femme dans Fauteuil."  This is not to say that he did not do such a work, but I would guess that if he did, it is pretty rare.

Now, to the signature.  I would be impossible to know whether the work was signed in pencil or the signature would be part of the image without having the work to examine closely.  If the signature is at the bottom of the work, outside of the printed area, it may be written in pencil.

Is there an edition number? (Such as 14/50...meaning print number 14 of an edition of 50)

Date?  Very often Picasso would sign his name in pencil and add the date.

Another clue might be the paper the work is printed on.  Is there a watermark in the paper?  If so, what is the watermark?

I suspect that you are attempting to determine whether the print in question is authentic or not.  If you live in a large city, there are art dealers who could look at the work and make a better guess than I, who have no access to the work itself.

If it is, indeed, a signed Picasso print, you could take to most large museums, and they would be willing to look at it.

I am sorry that I cannot provide you with a more definitive answer, but failing to see the work makes it almost impossible to answer your question.

At any rate, good luck.

Ben Mahmoud