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Dubai hosts Picasso's masterpiece. The Inspiring "Woman of the Hour"

• Picasso's painting is one of the first important works purchased by the University of Art Works Emily Fischer Landau. From the source

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Sotheby's has revealed that it will be exhibiting one of Picasso's masterpieces, "The Woman of the Hour", for the first time outside the United States, with Dubai as its first stop on its world tour.

Sotheby's Dubai noted that the painting is a portrait of Marie-Thérèse Walter, painted in 1932, and is valued at more than $120 million, and will be displayed at the Maison's headquarters in the Dubai International Financial Centre on the 25th and 26th of this month.

Katia Nuno Boys, President of Sotheby's in the UAE, said: "We are proud to unveil a masterpiece of such importance in the UAE, making it the first stop on the World Painting Tour.

"The painting is one of the most important modern works of art that we have put up for auction, and it is the perfect work of art that highlights our efforts and underscores our commitment to bringing the best arts and culture to the region."

"In 2020, we showcased a painting by Sandro Botticelli valued at more than $80 million, which made headlines as the most expensive painting ever shown in the Middle East by an auction house. Since then, we have exhibited a collection of works by painters such as Boiti, Kandinsky, Warhol and others. The appearance and display of Picasso's painting at our house in Dubai is surpassing the record set by Botticelli's painting and marks the first time that a painting of such artistic value has been exhibited by one of the UAE's art greats."

Picasso's painting is one of the first important works purchased by Emily Fischer Landau's art university, a masterpiece painted in 1932 (Picasso's miraculous year), filled with emotional abandonment at the same time. Not only is it an outstanding work of art painted in a year that saw Picasso's artistic breakthrough, but also a remarkable creative work in the story of Western art, according to Julien Dawes, Head of Impressionist and Modern Art at Sotheby's in the Americas.

Emily Fisher Landau (1920-1923) purchased this painting in 1968, at the beginning of her collection journey. The purchase was a bold move for a new art collector, but she realized it was an unmissable painting and immediately bought it from the Pace gallery, a cornerstone of her collection for more than five decades hanging from the fireplace shelf at her New York home.

The painting depicts Marie-Thérèse Walter (the artist's golden muse and the subject of many of his most accomplished paintings).

The record price of a work of art by Picasso was set at auction in 2015 at $179 million.

• 25 and 26 January, the painting is on display at Sotheby's Dubai.

• 1932 The year Picasso painted this painting valued at $120 million.

Rolex lover

The "woman of the hour" has an important feature, the watch that Picasso clearly placed on Marie-Thérèse's wrist. Of the many paintings he painted during his long career, only three, including the one, contain a watch, yet wristwatches were things of great importance to him, as Picasso had a great passion for exceptional watches, and he owned three of the most important in the world, namely Rolex, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Patek Philippe. In this painting, Marie-Thérèse wears one of his precious watches. At the same time, the presence of the watch refers to the centuries-old tradition of Vanitas painting, with references to the demise of love and life.

At the height of his youth

Julian Dawes, head of the Department of Impressionist and Modern Art at Sotheby's in the Americas, told Emirates Today about the painting "The Woman of the Hour", which will be displayed in Dubai: "This masterpiece is characterized by being one of the distinctive pieces in the career of Pablo Picasso, which he presented at the height of his life, and the stage to which the painting returns, is that it belongs to the most precious works in the artist's career."

He added that the painting highlights the golden relationship between the artist and Marie-Thérèse Walter, since the first meeting in 1927, and how it matured until they had their daughter Maya. She noted that this painting is the first time she travels to the Middle East, as she has not left the United States since it was exhibited in 1968, and she will begin her world tour from Dubai to countries including London, Hong Kong and Taipei.