Picasso by Picasso His first museum exhibition 1932

This book re-creates Picasso's first museum retrospective in 1932. Bezzola (curator of modern & contemporary art & head of exhibitions, Kunsthaus Z rich) and independent curator Fraquelli focus on a period when Picasso turned 50 and was at the top of his form. Four chapters cover two European retrospectives and the aftermath of those exhibits that led Picasso to paint Guernica. The significance of the first 1932 Zurich retrospective was twofold: it was a solo exhibit after Picasso convinced the museum to drop Leger and Braque from a proposed three-artist show, and all of the featured paintings were selected and hung by Picasso rather than the curators, and not in chronological order. The book is replete with black-and-white installation shots of both retrospectives and provides color illustrations of all the works in the shows. The appendixes include a facsimile of the 1932 exhibition catalog from the Kunsthaus Z rich. VERDICT Presenting an original angle in Picasso scholarship, this book is recommended for all modern art history collections as well as Picasso and general art enthusiasts.-Ellen Bates, New York (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.