Art History

September 23, 2025

Rediscovered Picasso Painting Heads To Auction After 80 Years of Hiding in a Private Collection

After more than 80 years in a private collection, a painting by Pablo Picasso will finally see the light of day. Next month, Lucien Paris will auction off Buste de femme au chapeau à fleurs (Dora Maar), originally painted by the renowned artist in 1943 and purchased by a collector only a few months later in 1944. Lucien Paris estimates that the work is worth €8 million (about $9.45 million)

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August 11, 2025

How a Man Born Into Slavery Became an Art History Legend

By the time the Union army arrived in Dallas County, Ala., in 1865, Bill Traylor had already been enslaved for about 12 years, ever since he was born on a cotton plantation around 1853. After his emancipation, Traylor spent the majority of his life as a tenant farmer near Montgomery, until he picked up drawing in 1939.

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June 9, 2025

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Returns Three Ancient Sculptures to Iraq

Three ancient artifacts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collections are on their way back home. After extensive provenance research by scholars, a Sumerian vessel made of gypsum alabaster and two Babylonian ceramic sculptures will be returned to Iraq. This announcement follows the launch of The Met's Cultural Property Initiative, which involves focused research into the history of items in the collection.

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June 1, 2025

See How Picasso Drew His Masterpieces in Real-Time in This Incredible Documentary

In 1956, the French director Henri-Georges Clouzot released a documentary focusing on one of art history’s greatest masters: Pablo Picasso. Titled Le mystère Picasso (“The Mystery of Picasso”), the film wasn’t a sweeping overview of the artist’s life, nor an attempt to reveal the stories behind specific masterpieces. It was, instead, an artifact that memorialized Picasso’s artistic process in real-time.

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My Modern Met

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