As from Tuesday 16th June, the Instituto Cervantes in Tokyo, in collaboration with Museo Picasso Málaga, will be hosting this documentary exhibition on the poetic side of Picasso. The exhibition was seen last year at Instituto Cervantes in Beijing, and then at the Miguel de Cervantes Library in Shanghai. The Malaga-born genius who did so much to change the course of Western art history during the 20th century was also a poet. Picasso, the Writer therefore takes a look at this lesser-known side of the Spanish artist. On the opening day, Monday 15th June, an online conversation will take place between Japanese art historian and honorary professor at the University of Waseda, Yasujiro Otaka, and José Lebrero Stals, curator of the documentary exhibition and artistic director of Museo Picasso de Málaga.

The exhibition, which runs until 30th September, examines how Pablo Picasso used pencil and Indian ink in a highly original way to paint words and then to transform them into pictograms that tell us about his world and memories. Picasso, the Writer features facsimiles, photographs and publications relating to Picasso’s literary output, along with poems and a documentary specially produced for the occasion, in which Spanish authors and intellectuals, including the director of the Instituto Cervantes, poet Luis García Montero, reflect upon Picasso and his written work.

To illustrate the relationship between Pablo Picasso and Japan, and their mutual inspiration, a letter from Japanese author Kuninosuke Matsuo to Pablo Picasso held in the Musée national Picasso-Paris collection will also be on display, along with six original ceramics by Picasso, courtesy of art collector Toshiyasu Fujinawa, President of the Yoku Moku company. To coincide with the exhibition, a catalogue has been published containing essays by Japanese experts who have contributed to the project during its time in Japan. For next year, a performance in Japanese of Picasso’s play “Desire by the Tail” is planned. The exhibition can be visited in limited groups booked in advance, and in compliance with the health and safety measures set by the Cervantes Institute in Tokyo.

For full information on how to see the exhibition https://picasso-escritor-junio16-24.peatix.com/