The year of Picasso 

With the 50th anniversary of Picasso’s death next year, Spain and France will partner to organize an international exhibition dedicated to the artist’s legacy with shows put together across Europe and the US in 2023. Picasso Celebration 1973-2023 aims to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the artist’s death and showcase his works to a younger generation across Europe and the United States.

Why Spain and France? What’s the connection? Well, Pablo Picasso was born in 1881 in Malaga, Spain and died in France in 1973. “The Picasso 1973-2023 Celebration” is led by two European nations that have set up a commission of leaders with Cécile Debray, the president of the Musée Picasso Paris at the helm, alongside Pablo’s grandson Bernard Ruiz-Picasso, who founded a museum dedicated to his grandfather in Andalusia, putting together the government-backed program.

This is a huge celebration in the art world that will include 38 very important art institutions in Europe and in the US. As the Spanish cultural minister Miguel Iceta said, “We want to present Picasso exactly how he was,” by highlighting his “artistic legacy” and the “permanence of his work.”

Picassopalooza 2023, as some call it, intends to revisit the life and works of Pablo Picasso in the hopes of gaining a contemporary perspective of an artist who is still very much alive through his works today. I recently had the pleasure of celebrating among friends the Día de la Hispanidad as we welcomed our new Ambassador of Spain to the Philippines H.E. Miguel Utray where he expressed the continued support for our shared heritage as well as this upcoming event on Picasso’s artistic legacy that will surely make an impact on art lovers across the globe, including the youth.

As always, when it comes to our history, it is very important that we espouse the interests of the younger generation not only to continue tradition but, more importantly, to appreciate a foundation that ought to move us forward. Looking at art from the past gives us clues to who we are as a people and it continues to reflect our values in a society. With 22 countries around the world that speak Spanish, it wouldn’t be a wonder for Picassolooza 2023 to impact people greatly – not to mention culturally worldwide.

It may be art but art is also a great teacher and with younger generations coming in, one can certainly gain depth from the works of a master such as Pablo as, after all, we Filipinos have our own “Filipino Picasso” in the form of “Paco” and a little Picasso in a boy known as “Worth.” It’s making sense isn’t it ?