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Pablo Picasso Buste de Femme (Dora Maar) State I (Bloch 308) For Sale
Pablo Picasso
Buste de Femme (Dora Maar) State I (Bloch 308), 1938
Etching, aquatint, scraper and engraving on Montval laid paper; untrimmed (deckled edges on all four sides) with wide margins all around
9 1/2 x 5 1/8 in 24 x 13 cm
About this work
This work, Buste de Femme (Dora Maar), State I, is an etching enriched with aquatint, scraper, and engraving on Montval laid paper, and it offers a compelling example of Picasso’s mastery of intaglio printmaking. Dedicated to his muse Dora Maar, the piece demonstrates not only his technical command of etching but also his ability to translate psychological complexity and symbolic resonance through the simplest of linear means.Etching provided Picasso with a way to explore line in its purest form—direct, incisive, and permanent. Unlike lithography, which could feel spontaneous and painterly, etching required a more deliberate, crafted approach, where the artist’s marks were bitten into the metal plate by acid. In Buste de Femme (Dora Maar), Picasso combines etching with aquatint (which creates tonal effects), engraving (which deepens the line), and scraper techniques (used to soften or erase areas), showing a full range of intaglio methods in a single work.The use of Montval laid paper, prized for its strength and subtle texture, enhances the crispness of the etched lines, allowing every mark—whether delicate or bold—to register with clarity. The medium’s inherent gravitas also matches the weight of the subject matter, elevating the portrait from mere likeness to symbolic image.The portrait presents Dora Maar in Picasso’s characteristic late 1930s style, where figuration is abstracted and fractured but still tethered to recognizable features. Dora’s head, elongated and angular, is both human and mask-like, her eyes depicted with cross-like motifs that suggest intensity and mystery. Her body, reduced to geometric forms and simplified curves, carries both solidity and vulnerability.At the bottom of the plate, Picasso inscribes a block of text—an unusual feature in his etched portraits—that introduces an almost diaristic element, merging image and writing into a unified statement. The combination of spare line and textual presence creates a work that is simultaneously portrait, symbol, and reflection.By the late 1930s, Picasso had already established himself as one of the greatest printmakers of the 20th century. His technical innovations in etching are evident here: the clarity of line, the confident economy of strokes, and the balance between open space and incised form all speak to his deep understanding of the medium’s expressive potential.Etching requires precision, as each mark on the plate becomes part of the final image, and corrections are not easily made. Picasso, however, embraced this discipline as a strength. His lines—though deceptively simple—carry enormous weight, revealing character, mood, and psychological depth with minimal means. This is the essence of his etching mastery: the ability to strip away excess and arrive at pure expression through line alone.Dora Maar was both Picasso’s lover and a crucial artistic collaborator during one of the most turbulent periods of his life, the era surrounding the Spanish Civil War and the creation of Guernica (1937). She embodied, for Picasso, both muse and intellectual equal, and her presence permeated his portraits of the late 1930s and early 1940s.In Buste de Femme (Dora Maar), the abstracted features and angular forms capture not just Dora’s likeness but also her complex role in Picasso’s life: intense, enigmatic, and transformative. The fractured lines echo the sense of psychological fragmentation and tension that marked both their relationship and the historical moment.Buste de Femme (Dora Maar), State I highlights Picasso’s extraordinary skill in etching, where his economy of line conveys both physical presence and inner complexity. By combining etching with aquatint, engraving, and scraper techniques, he demonstrates a command of intaglio printmaking that is both technical and expressive. The result is a portrait that transcends likeness, embodying Dora Maar’s psychological intensity while showcasing Picasso’s genius for reducing form to its essence.This work stands as a testament to Picasso’s position as not only a revolutionary painter but also one of the greatest etchers in the history of art, rivaling masters like Rembrandt and Goya in the expressive power of his prints.For more information or to buy Buste de Femme (Dora Maar), State I by Pablo Picasso, contact our galleries using the form below.
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Edition & Provenance
- Year
- 1938
- Medium
- Etching, aquatint, scraper and engraving on Montval laid paper; untrimmed (deckled edges on all four sides) with wide margins all around
- Edition
- Edition of 15
About Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso (1881–1973, born Málaga, Spain) is the most productive and formally transformative artist in the history of Western art — a figure whose influence on twentieth-century painting, sculpture, printmaking, and ceramics is so pervasive that it remains, more than fifty years after his death, genuinely difficult to assess. Born in Málaga to an art teacher father who recognised and encouraged his prodigious talent, Picasso studied in Barcelona and Madrid before arriving in Paris in the early years of the twentieth century, where the encounter with Cézanne, African art, and his own restless intelligence produced Cubism — perhaps the most radical rupture in the history of representation since the Renaissance.
Pablo Picasso prints for sale at Guy Hepner represent one of the most significant collecting opportunities in the modern art market. Our gallery offers original Picasso lithographs, linocuts, etchings, and aquatints — each accompanied by full provenance documentation and catalogue raisonné references. Whether you are seeking a signed Mourlot lithograph, a Vollard Suite etching, a Vallauris linocut, or a late aquatint, Guy Hepner has the expertise and inventory to assist collectors at every level.
Pablo Picasso Prints For Sale
Picasso's print output is among the richest and most varied in art history, spanning etchings, lithographs, linocuts, and aquatints produced across seven decades. Understanding the categories is essential to collecting intelligently.
Lithographs were produced primarily through Fernand Mourlot's atelier in Paris, where Picasso worked from 1945 onwards. Mourlot documented over 400 lithographs bearing Picasso's hand, ranging from abstract heads and Cubist still lifes to the monumental Toros y Toreros bull-fighting series. Editions typically run from 50 to 275 copies. Unsigned Mourlot lithographs trade between $3,000 and $40,000; signed examples command $15,000 to $150,000 or more depending on subject and condition.
Linocuts, produced primarily at Vallauris between 1958 and 1963 using Picasso's own colour-reduction technique, are among the most technically revolutionary of all his prints. By cutting progressively deeper into a single block, Picasso achieved complex colour sequences impossible by conventional means. Edition sizes are small — typically 50 copies — and signed linocuts frequently exceed $80,000 at auction.
Etchings span Picasso's entire career, from his earliest Parisian years through to the late suites of the 1960s and early 1970s. The medium suited his restless line perfectly, and his etched output includes some of the finest prints of the twentieth century. Edition sizes vary widely, from the 50 impressions of the Vollard Suite to smaller later editions. Prices range from $5,000 for minor early works to well over $500,000 for Vollard Suite masterpieces.
Aquatints combine etching's linear precision with tonal washes of extraordinary subtlety. Picasso's aquatint work, often produced in collaboration with master printer Roger Lacourière, includes some of his most formally sophisticated printed images. These prints are rarer than his lithographs and command significant premiums accordingly.
Authentication for all Picasso prints relies on the Bloch catalogue raisonné — the definitive scholarly record of his print output — supplemented by Mourlot's lithograph catalogue where applicable.
Pablo Picasso Paintings For Sale
Picasso's paintings represent the summit of the twentieth-century market. Understanding his periods is essential for collectors.
The Blue Period (1901–1904) produced austere, emotionally charged paintings on themes of poverty, isolation, and melancholy — elongated figures rendered in blue-grey tones that echo El Greco and carry an extraordinary psychological weight. Works from this period are among the most sought-after in the history of art.
The Rose Period (1904–1906) brought warmer hues and more tender subjects — circus performers, saltimbanques, and acrobats rendered with a new formal assurance. The transitional works that followed, leading to Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907), represent the hinge on which the entire history of modern painting pivots.
The Cubist period (1907–1921), co-developed with Georges Braque, produced the most intellectually radical body of painting in the twentieth century. Analytic Cubism (1909–1912) fragmented forms into near-monochromatic facets; Synthetic Cubism (from 1912) introduced collage, typography, and bolder colour. Major Cubist paintings are virtually never available on the primary market; they appear at auction rarely and achieve extraordinary prices.
Picasso's auction record stands at $179,365,000 — achieved at Christie's New York in May 2015 for Les Femmes d'Alger (Version O), a 1955 work from his series responding to Delacroix. Nude, Green Leaves and Bust (1932) reached $106,482,500 at Christie's in May 2010. These are benchmark figures for a career that produced well over 16,000 works catalogued by Zervos.
Collecting Picasso: What to Look For
The most desirable areas of the Picasso print market for serious collectors are well-defined.
The Vollard Suite (1930–1937): ninety-seven etchings (and three aquatints with Roger Lacourière) commissioned by dealer Ambroise Vollard. The suite is considered Picasso's greatest print achievement — 100 plates encompassing the Sculptor's Studio sequence, the Minotaur series, and intimate portraits of Marie-Thérèse Walter. Published posthumously by Vollard's estate, the complete suite is extraordinarily rare. Individual plates now trade from $80,000 to over $500,000.
Suite 347 (1968): three hundred and forty-seven etchings completed in seven months when Picasso was eighty-six years old — an astonishing demonstration of creative energy in extreme old age. Themes include Degas's brothel scenes, Spanish picadors, Rembrandt, and Ingres. Published by Galerie Louise Leiris. These prints represent exceptional value relative to their historical importance.
Mourlot lithographs: Fernando Mourlot's catalogue documents Picasso's lithographic output with scholarly precision. The Bloch numbers (B.1 through B.2042 for the complete print oeuvre) and Mourlot numbers together form the authentication framework used by every major auction house.
Crommelynck etchings: Piero and Aldo Crommelynck's Paris workshop produced Picasso's late etchings with extraordinary technical refinement. The 347 Suite plates were printed here, as were the 156 Series etchings (1970–1972) — Picasso's final major print campaign.
Condition criteria for print collecting: look for clean, wide margins with no trimming; avoid foxing (rust-coloured spots from paper acidity) or tide lines; fading affects lithographs most severely — examine under strong light. Impressions on Japan paper or with remarques command significant premiums.
Picasso Authentication
Authentication for Picasso works operates through established institutional channels.
For prints: the Bloch catalogue raisonné (Picasso: His Graphic Work, Volumes I–IV) provides reference numbers for all known prints. Mourlot's catalogue covers lithographs specifically. The Succession Picasso estate stamp appears on many posthumously published editions. Any print without clear catalogue raisonné reference and provenance chain should be examined by a specialist before purchase.
For paintings and works on paper: the Comité Picasso (now dissolved) was the primary authentication body; the Succession Picasso now handles estate matters. The Zervos catalogue raisonné (33 volumes) is the authoritative scholarly record for paintings, drawings, and sculpture. Expert authentication by a recognised Picasso specialist is essential for any major purchase.
Guy Hepner Gallery, 177 Tenth Avenue, New York, offers full provenance verification and catalogue raisonné consultation for all Picasso works. We provide free, confidential valuations for collectors looking to sell, and access to a global network of qualified buyers. Our expertise spans ceramics, prints, linocuts, drawings, and paintings across all periods of the artist's work.