Rare complete suite of La suite des Saltimbanques by Picasso leads Bonhams sale
(Artdaily.org)

A rare complete series of Picasso’s first printed works La suite des Saltimbanques leads Bonhams Prints and Multiples sale in London on Thursday 13 June with estimate of £170,000-250,000. Towards the end of what is known as his Rose period (1904-06), Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) produced a body of work that focused on clowns, harlequins and carnival performers. He was fascinated by itinerant acrobats or saltimbanques, admiring their free spirit and independence, and he explored this theme in several key works. Alongside paintings such as the 1905 masterpiece La Famille des Saltimbanques, Picasso – then in his early 20s and living in bohemian Montmartre at the Bateau-Lavoir – worked on a series of 15 etchings and drypoints that showed gypsies and acrobats behind the scenes, caught in private moments. Some are shown rehearsing; others eating with their families, or taking a bath. Bonhams Director of Prints and Multiples Luc