Picasso’s ‘Buffalo Bill’ Could Fetch up to $15 Million at Christie’s

Picasso painted Buffalo Bill in 1911 during the highpoint of Analytical Cubism, an art movement known for structurally dissecting the subject viewpoint by viewpoint, wrestling in fragmentary images and overlapping planes.

In the painting, the image of the Wild West star included only signature elements such as his famous goatee and Stetson hat, according to Christie’s description.

Born William Frederick Cody (1846-1917), Buffalo Bill was a soldier, hunter, and showman. He founded Buffalo Bill’s Wild West in 1883 in Omaha, Nebraska to perform shows with themes of cowboys and the frontier. The company was on tour in Paris in 1889, and again in 1905, when Picasso probably saw him.

“Buffalo Bill’s daring exploration of new territory as a scout resonated with Picasso, who himself was reconnoitering new frontiers in his pioneering Cubist art,” David Kleiweg de Zwaan, a senior specialist of impressionist and modern art at Christie’s, said in a news release.

The work will be offered as a highlight at Christie’s evening auction of 20th-century art on Nov. 17. The sale coincides with a Cubism-themed exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York that will last through next January, de Zwaan said.

Buffalo Bill was first owned by Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler, a German-born French art collector who was the first champion of Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and other Cubist artists. The current anonymous owner acquired the painting at a Sotheby’s auction in London in 1986. The sale will mark the first time the painting has appeared on the market in nearly 36 years, according to Christie’s.

The work has been included in several major exhibitions, including Picasso’s landmark 1932 retrospective at the Galerie Georges Petit in Paris, and the 1989-90 exhibition, “Picasso and Braque, Pioneering Cubism,” at The Museum of Modern Art in New York.

The top lot of Christie’s evening sale of 20th-century art will be a Willem de Kooning large-scale canvas, Untitled III, estimated in the region of US$35 million, the auction house announced previously.

Pantone has released its 2024 Colour of the Year — and it’s warm and fuzzy.

Peach Fuzz has been named as the colour to sum up the year ahead, chosen to imbue a sense of “kindness and tenderness, communicating a message of caring and sharing, community and collaboration” said vice president of the Pantone Color Institute, Laurie Pressman.

“A warm and cosy shade highlighting our desire for togetherness with others or for enjoying a moment of stillness and the feeling of sanctuary this creates, PANTONE 13-1023 Peach Fuzz presents a fresh approach to a new softness,” she said.

Pantone Colour of the Year is often a reflection of world mood and events

The choice of a soft pastel will come as little surprise to those who follow the Pantone releases, which are often a reflection of world affairs and community mood. Typically, when economies are buoyant and international security is assured, colours tend to the bolder spectrum. Given the ongoing war in Ukraine, the Israeli-Gaza conflict and talk of recession in many countries, the choice of a softer, more reassuring colour is predictable.

“At a time of turmoil in many aspects of our lives, our need for nurturing, empathy and compassion grows ever stronger as does our imaginings of a more peaceful future,” she said. “We are reminded that a vital part of living a full life is having the good health, stamina, and strength to enjoy it.”

The colour also reflects a desire to turn inward and exercise self care in an increasingly frenetic world.

“As we navigate the present and build toward a new world, we are reevaluating what is important,” she said. “Reframing how we want to live, we are expressing ourselves with greater intentionality and consideration.

“Recalibrating our priorities to align with our internal values, we are focusing on health and wellbeing, both mental and physical, and cherishing what’s special — the warmth and comfort of spending time with friends and family, or simply taking a moment of time to ourselves.”

Each year since 2000, Pantone has released a colour of the year as a trendsetting tool for marketers and branding agents. It is widely taken up in the fashion and interior design industries, influencing collections across the spectrum.

Picasso’s ‘Buffalo Bill’ Could Fetch up to $15 Million at Christie’s

Pablo Picasso’s Buffalo Bill, a pre-war Cubist painting depicting the American frontiersman, is expected to fetch between US$10 million and US$15 million next Thursday evening at Christie’s in New York.

Prepare yourself for the year of the peach