The Toronto vase, dated MAI 1950 inside the rim, appears to have held special importance in the artist’s own estimation, since he arranged to have it prominently featured and extensively reproduced in the deluxe art journal Verve (above) in 1951, and again in Sabartès and Boek’s book Picasso (1955) as a representative example of his work in ceramics. It appears in the photographs of Picasso at Vallauris that Yousef Karsh shot in 1954. Clearly, Picasso was satisfied with the result, as he kept this vase in his own collection and allowed it to be widely publicized so early. The vase remained in his possession until his death, after which it passed to his granddaughter Marina. It was subsequently sold by Picasso’s dealer in New York. Fast-forward to 2012, when the family in Toronto who have inherited the vase wonder if it has become too expensive to display in their home, and decide to have it appraised. They know that the international auction house Christie’s have just concluded the sale of the Madoura Collection in London – the largest collection of Picasso ceramics ever to be offered for sale, representing the now shuttered Madoura workshop’s entire inventory. During this marathon two-day session, 543 Lots of Picasso’s edited ceramics went under the hammer, with 100 % sold and four new records set. The record-breaking works include a version of Grand Vase aux Femmes voilées (Lot 39, Ramié 116, the workshop’s example of the edition of 25 stamped E.E. for “Exemplaire Editeur”) that is very similar to their own vase. Madoura’s version sells for the equivalent of $1,145,407 USD including premium at Christie’s, more than ten times the pre-sale estimate. For the appraiser, Lot 39 from the Madoura sale represents an obvious, direct comparable. Yet close inspection shows a number of anomalies. The painted decorations on the Toronto vase do not correspond exactly to either of the edited versions 115 or 116 produced by the Madoura workshop, or to the examples sold by Christie’s. Some detailed research into Picasso’s working methods within the flow of production at the workshop indicates the reason why. This vase is an independent version of the design painted by Picasso himself, very likely created from one of the press moulds for Ramié 115 as an experimental idea for 116, or during the production of Ramié 116. In either case the Toronto vase is extremely rare, because virtually all of the edited ceramics the artist produced were hand-painted by other artisans in the workshop using press moulds taken from Picasso’s original design (his ‘artist’s copy’) as their model. They are, in fact, genuine replicas of Picasso’s design authorized by the artist but created by others. In the Toronto vase we have the original template created by Picasso, a variant of Ramié 116 that was never carried through as an edition, making it a unique, original work by the artist’s own hand. None of the unique ceramic pieces created by Picasso at Madoura were catalogued, thus the exact number and whereabouts of such works is difficult to determine. There appear to be only a handful of these ‘artist’s copies’ worldwide, and most of those are in museum collections. The only other known unique artist’s copy of Ramié 116 was gifted by Picasso (and signed by him inside the rim) to the Museo Internazionale della Ceramiche in Faenza, Italy. Once properly identified, it became clear that the rarity of the Toronto vase alone elevates its value substantially. As a unique, original work, prominently featured in the early literature and with impeccable provenance, its estimated value exceeds the achieved values of all known comparables, including the works featured in the Madoura Sale. Faced with this news, the owner now decides to become a vendor, and the purpose of the appraisal assignment shifts to a market value assessment. The appraisal process now provides the client with the knowledge of value required to operate confidently in the marketplace, and ultimately leads to a successful negotiation with Christie’s and a new world record at auction for a Picasso ceramic work – just shy of a million Pounds. An example of how appraisers can offer services that range beyond estimating value – they can arm clients with knowledge about the worth of items of personal property that empowers them to realize their full value. Ken Forsyth, ISA AM Accredited
forsythfineart@sympatico.ca