Marie-Thérèse Walter
Encyclopedia
Marie-Thérèse Walter was the French
mistress
and model
of Pablo Picasso
from 1927 to about 1935, and the mother of his daughter, Maya Widmaier-Picasso. Their relationship began when she was seventeen years old; he was 45 and still living with his first wife, Olga Khokhlova
. It ended when Picasso moved on to his next mistress, artist Dora Maar
.
In Picasso's paintings, Walter appears as blonde, sunny and bright, as in Le Rêve
(1932), in contrast to his darker portrayal of Dora Maar
, whom Picasso painted as the tortured "weeping woman
".
in Paris
. Author Herbert T. Schwartz dates their first meeting back to January of 1925, at Gare St-Lazare, Paris; whereas author Roy MacGregor-Hastie
dates the encounter up to 8 January 1928. At the time Picasso was married to Olga Khokhlova
, a Russian ballerina, with whom he had a five-year-old son. He and Walter, then seventeen years old, began a relationship which was kept secret from his wife until 1935. From 1927 onwards, Walter lived close to Picasso's family. From 1930, she stayed in a house opposite Picasso's at Rue La Boétie
44. In July 1930, he bought a castle at Boisgeloup close to Gisors
in the Normandie
, which he used as a studio for sculptures mainly. Marie was the unseen shadow of the family and became his model and muse
for both paintings and sculptures.
d, because Picasso wanted to avoid the even division of property dictated by French law; instead, they lived separately until her death in 1955.
Picasso and Marie's daughter, María de la Concepción, called "Maya", was born on 5 September 1935. Marie and Maya stayed with Picasso at Juan-les-Pins
in the South of France from March 25 to May 14 in 1936, and then at Le Tremblay-sur-Mauldre
, 25 km from Versailles
, where Picasso visited on the weekends and some weekdays to play with his daughter. Maya also modelled for some of his paintings, including Maya with Doll
(1938).
Marie-Thérèse became jealous when Picasso fell in love with Dora Maar
, a surrealist
photographer and model for Picasso, in 1935. Once, she and Maar met accidentally in Picasso's studio when he was painting Guernica
. Asked about this in later life, Picasso remarked that he had been quite happy with the situation and that when they demanded that he choose between them, he told them that they would have to fight it out themselves, at which point the two women began to wrestle. Picasso described it "as one of his choicest memories."
While Picasso portrays Dora in his works of art as dark and in pain, as the "woman in tears", he painted Marie-Thérèse as just the opposite: blonde and bright.
Picasso supported Marie and Maya financially, but he never married Marie.
On 20 October 1977, four years after Picasso's death, Marie-Thérèse committed suicide
by hanging herself in the garage at Juan-les-Pins, South of France.
In 2004, Maya's son and Marie-Thérèse's grandson, Olivier Widmaier Picasso, published a biography
of his famous grandfather titled Picasso: The Real Family Story.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
mistress
Mistress (lover)
A mistress is a long-term female lover and companion who is not married to her partner; the term is used especially when her partner is married. The relationship generally is stable and at least semi-permanent; however, the couple does not live together openly. Also the relationship is usually,...
and model
Model (art)
Art models are models who pose for photographers, painters, sculptors, and other artists as part of their work of art. Art models who pose in the nude for life drawing are usually called life models...
of Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
from 1927 to about 1935, and the mother of his daughter, Maya Widmaier-Picasso. Their relationship began when she was seventeen years old; he was 45 and still living with his first wife, Olga Khokhlova
Olga Khokhlova
Olga Stepanovna Khokhlova was a Ukrainian-Russian dancer, better known as the first wife of Pablo Picasso and the mother of his son, Paulo.- Biography:Olga was born in Nizhyn, Russian Empire, now Ukraine....
. It ended when Picasso moved on to his next mistress, artist Dora Maar
Dora Maar
Dora Maar was a French photographer, poet and painter, best known for being a lover and muse of Pablo Picasso.-Life:...
.
In Picasso's paintings, Walter appears as blonde, sunny and bright, as in Le Rêve
Le Rêve (painting)
Le Rêve is a 1932 oil painting by Pablo Picasso, then 50 years old, portraying his 24-year-old mistress Marie-Thérèse Walter. It is said to have been painted in one afternoon, on 24 January 1932...
(1932), in contrast to his darker portrayal of Dora Maar
Dora Maar
Dora Maar was a French photographer, poet and painter, best known for being a lover and muse of Pablo Picasso.-Life:...
, whom Picasso painted as the tortured "weeping woman
The Weeping Woman
Weeping Woman , is an oil on canvas painted by Pablo Picasso in France, 1937. Picasso was intrigued with the subject, and revisited the theme numerous times that year. This painting was the final and most elaborate of the series...
".
Early years with Picasso (1927-1935)
She first met Picasso on 8 January 1927 in front of the Galeries LafayetteGaleries Lafayette
- History :In 1893 Théophile Bader and his cousin Alphonse Kahn opened a fashion store in a small haberdasher's shop at the corner of rue La Fayette and the Chaussée d'Antin, Paris. In 1896, the company purchased the entire building at n°1 rue La Fayette and in 1905 the buildings at n°38, 40 et...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Author Herbert T. Schwartz dates their first meeting back to January of 1925, at Gare St-Lazare, Paris; whereas author Roy MacGregor-Hastie
Roy MacGregor-Hastie
Roy MacGregor-Hastie is an author. journalist, political commentator, poet, and translator from and into Romanian.In the late 1950s and early 1960s he was a regular contributor to the Sunday Express, and his columns were syndicated worldwide by London Express features...
dates the encounter up to 8 January 1928. At the time Picasso was married to Olga Khokhlova
Olga Khokhlova
Olga Stepanovna Khokhlova was a Ukrainian-Russian dancer, better known as the first wife of Pablo Picasso and the mother of his son, Paulo.- Biography:Olga was born in Nizhyn, Russian Empire, now Ukraine....
, a Russian ballerina, with whom he had a five-year-old son. He and Walter, then seventeen years old, began a relationship which was kept secret from his wife until 1935. From 1927 onwards, Walter lived close to Picasso's family. From 1930, she stayed in a house opposite Picasso's at Rue La Boétie
Rue La Boétie
The rue La Boétie is a street in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, running from rue d'Astorg to avenue des Champs-Élysées.Number 45 is the location of the Salle Gaveau, a 1020-seat concert hall built in 1905-1906 by the architect Jacques Hermant, for the piano manufacturer Gaveau....
44. In July 1930, he bought a castle at Boisgeloup close to Gisors
Gisors
Gisors is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located northwest from the center of Paris.Gisors, together with the neighbouring communes of Trie-Château and Trie-la-Ville, form an urban area of 12,669 inhabitants...
in the Normandie
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
, which he used as a studio for sculptures mainly. Marie was the unseen shadow of the family and became his model and muse
Muse
The Muses in Greek mythology, poetry, and literature, are the goddesses who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge, related orally for centuries in the ancient culture, that was contained in poetic lyrics and myths...
for both paintings and sculptures.
Final years with Picasso (1935-1940)
In 1935, Marie became pregnant. When Picasso's wife, Olga, was informed by a friend that her husband had a longtime mistress who was expecting a child, she immediately left Picasso with their son Paulo and moved to the South of France. Picasso and Olga never divorceDivorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
d, because Picasso wanted to avoid the even division of property dictated by French law; instead, they lived separately until her death in 1955.
Picasso and Marie's daughter, María de la Concepción, called "Maya", was born on 5 September 1935. Marie and Maya stayed with Picasso at Juan-les-Pins
Juan-les-Pins
Juan-les-PinsCountry:Region:Department: Alpes-MaritimesArrondissement: GrasseCanton: Vallauris-Antibes-OuestMunicipality: AntibesPopulation:?Coordinates:Time zone:CET, UTC+1Elevation:10 amslPostal code:06600...
in the South of France from March 25 to May 14 in 1936, and then at Le Tremblay-sur-Mauldre
Le Tremblay-sur-Mauldre
Le Tremblay-sur-Mauldre is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France.-References:*...
, 25 km from Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
, where Picasso visited on the weekends and some weekdays to play with his daughter. Maya also modelled for some of his paintings, including Maya with Doll
Maya with Doll
Maya with Doll is an oil painting by Pablo Picasso. Created in 1938, the New York Times described it as "a colorful Cubist portrait of Picasso’s daughter as a child clutching a doll."-2007 theft and recovery:...
(1938).
Marie-Thérèse became jealous when Picasso fell in love with Dora Maar
Dora Maar
Dora Maar was a French photographer, poet and painter, best known for being a lover and muse of Pablo Picasso.-Life:...
, a surrealist
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
photographer and model for Picasso, in 1935. Once, she and Maar met accidentally in Picasso's studio when he was painting Guernica
Guernica (painting)
Guernica is a painting by Pablo Picasso. It was created in response to the bombing of Guernica, Basque Country, by German and Italian warplanes at the behest of the Spanish Nationalist forces, on 26 April 1937, during the Spanish Civil War...
. Asked about this in later life, Picasso remarked that he had been quite happy with the situation and that when they demanded that he choose between them, he told them that they would have to fight it out themselves, at which point the two women began to wrestle. Picasso described it "as one of his choicest memories."
While Picasso portrays Dora in his works of art as dark and in pain, as the "woman in tears", he painted Marie-Thérèse as just the opposite: blonde and bright.
Later years and death
In 1940, Marie and Maya moved to Paris, Boulevard Henri IV no 1, since the house at Le Tremblay-sur-Mauldre was occupied during World War II.Picasso supported Marie and Maya financially, but he never married Marie.
On 20 October 1977, four years after Picasso's death, Marie-Thérèse committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
by hanging herself in the garage at Juan-les-Pins, South of France.
In 2004, Maya's son and Marie-Thérèse's grandson, Olivier Widmaier Picasso, published a biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
of his famous grandfather titled Picasso: The Real Family Story.
Incomplete list of portraits of Marie-Thérèse
- La LectureLa LectureLa Lecture is a painting by Spanish artist Pablo Picasso completed in January 1932. The oil painting depicts Picasso's mistress and muse, Marie-Thérèse Walter, asleep with a book upon her lap...
(1932) - The DreamLe Rêve (painting)Le Rêve is a 1932 oil painting by Pablo Picasso, then 50 years old, portraying his 24-year-old mistress Marie-Thérèse Walter. It is said to have been painted in one afternoon, on 24 January 1932...
(1932) - Nude, Green Leaves and Bust (1932)
- Nude in a Black Armchair (1932)
- Woman in Hat and Fur CollarWoman in Hat and Fur CollarWoman in Hat and Fur Collar , painted in Paris in 1937, is one of the numerous portraits Pablo Picasso did of Marie-Thérèse Walter, his lover between 1927 and 1935, approximately, and the mother of his daughter Maya...
(1937)
External links
- Marie-Thérèse Walter at picasso.tamu.edu
- http://www.insecula.com/contact/A009008.html
- http://www.insecula.com/contact/A009015.html
- Picasso's 106 Million $ Muse - slideshow by The First PostThe First PostThe First Post is a British daily online news magazine based in London. It was launched in August 2005. It publishes news, current affairs, lifestyle, opinion, arts and sports pages, and it features an online games arcade and a cinema featuring short films, virals, trailers and eyewitness news...