Great event in the calendar of art. An unpublished portrait of Dora Maar by Pablo Picasso, entitled Bust of a woman with a flower hat, will be auctioned on October 24, 2025 at the Maison Lucien Paris. It is the first time that collectors can appreciate this work.
Painted in 1943 during the German occupation of Paris, the bust of a woman with a flower hat by Picasso (1881-1973) was acquired the following year by a French collector and has remained in the same family since then. This painting is an unpublished portrait of Dora Maar, whose real name was Henriette Theodora Markovitch (1907-1997), a French artist and photographer, best known for having been the muse and companion of Pablo Picasso in the 1930s and 1940s.
The auctions on October 24, 2025
This portrait is distinguished from other representations of Dora Maar by its bright color palette and its more soothing tone. Unlike the darker works of this period, such as La Femme qui pleure, this painting presents a softer and melancholic Dora Maar, with a richly decorated floral hat. The painting is part of one of the 28 portraits of a woman in a hat that the artist painted during the year 1943. It is signed, dated “July 11, 1943” on the back, and bears the reference “CH 44” from the Zervos catalog.
Bust of a woman with a flower hat has now left the family home (wishing to remain anonymous) which had preserved it for several decades. The work has been validated by the Picasso Committee, guaranteeing its authenticity. It will be visible for three days starting from October 21, 2025. It is therefore the first time that the public can appreciate this painting. Or even acquire it.
The Maison Lucien Paris is organizing an auction on October 24, 2025, in room 9 of the Hotel Drouot in Paris. Experts estimated it at eight million euros, but the price could well soar further due to the popularity of Picasso in the art market, its rarity and the tumultuous period in which this oil on canvas was born.
Picasso continues to panic in the auction rooms
The bid for a work by Pablo Picasso now goes beyond the mere framework of art to come close to that of ultra-luxury, reflecting a spectacular surge in prices on the global market. Masterpieces such as Les Femmes d’Alger (Version ‘O’) (1955), sold for 179.4 million dollars at Christie’s in New York in 2015, or Le Rêve (1932), sold for 155 million dollars in 2013 despite an accident that damaged the canvas, illustrate this vertiginous trend.
The iconic portraits of Dora Maar are not left out: Dora Maar au Chat (1941) was sold for $95 million at Sotheby’s in 2006, while Femme Nue Couchée (1932) and La Gommeuse (1901) each reached $67.5 million in 2022 and 2015, respectively.
These impressive figures confirm that owning a Picasso is no longer just an artistic collection, but a true heritage investment, where prestige, exclusivity and financial bet mingle to seduce the wealthiest collectors in the world.
Contemplate Picasso in the museums
If acquiring a work of Picasso remains reserved for the elite of collectors, several museums are currently unveiling some of his paintings. In Paris, the Picasso museum presents until March 12, 2027 “The Collection: Reviewing Picasso”. The permanent journey offers an immersion in the universe of the artist, revealing his major works and allowing to understand his artistic evolution through the different periods of his career.
Still in France, in Perpignan, the Hyacinthe Rigaud museum compares the works of Picasso with those of Maillol within the exhibition Maillol–Picasso: Defying the classical ideal. To be discovered until December 31, 2025.
Let’s then go to London where the modern art museum Le Tate Modern honors the Spanish artist in ‘Theatre Picasso’ until April 12, 2026. A vast collection of paintings, sculptures and graphic works traces his career.
Read also : 7 exhibitions to see this fall
Featured photo : © Succession Picasso 2025
