Art lovers in the UAE have a rare opportunity this season as a major exhibition dedicated to one of the most influential artists of the 20th century opens its doors in Abu Dhabi. Titled “Picasso, the Figure,” the exhibition explores the lifelong fascination of Pablo Picasso with the human body and how he reshaped its representation in modern art.
Hosted at the iconic Louvre Abu Dhabi, the exhibition traces nearly seven decades of Picasso’s artistic journey. Through paintings, sculptures and ceramics, visitors can witness how the artist continuously reimagined the human form while navigating moments of political change, personal struggles and bold artistic experimentation.
The exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Musée National Picasso-Paris, bringing together around 130 artworks. Many of these works come directly from the Paris museum’s collection, while others are on loan from cultural institutions and private collections across France, Qatar, Lebanon and the UAE.
Curated under the direction of Cécile Debray, along with Virginie Perdrisot-Cassan and Aisha AlAhmadi, the exhibition is structured into five thematic sections. Each section highlights different phases of Picasso’s artistic evolution—from his early experiments with Cubism to classical portraits, surrealist compositions and the bold, expressive works of his later years.
One of the central ideas of the exhibition is that Picasso remained, above all, a painter of the human figure. Even as he revolutionized artistic styles, the human body remained at the heart of his visual language.
Beyond showcasing Picasso’s work, the exhibition also explores his global influence. Paintings by notable Arab artists—including Dia al-Azzawi, Jewad Selim, Shakir Hassan Al Said, and Egyptian painter Ramses Younan—illustrate how Picasso’s ideas resonated across the Arab world and influenced generations of modern artists.
The exhibition also features the work of Algerian painter and ceramist Baya Mahieddine, whose 1947 Paris exhibition sparked an artistic dialogue with Picasso and the Surrealists.
One of the most striking moments in the exhibition is the pairing of photographs by Dora Maar, documenting the creation of Picasso’s famous anti-war masterpiece Guernica, alongside Al-Azzawi’s powerful work Elegy to My Trapped City (2011). The juxtaposition highlights how artists across generations have used art as a form of political expression.
Running until May 31 on Saadiyat Island, the exhibition offers visitors a unique opportunity to explore Picasso’s enduring legacy and the ways his revolutionary vision continues to shape global art today.
