Nasher offers new slate for fall semester

Pablo Picasso's work emerges from the kitschy depths of cultural recognition to take on a new highbrow sheen with the opening of Picasso and the Allure of Language at the Nasher Museum of Art. An impressively informative exhibition, the show packs the intellectual titillation of a critical essay and casts a fascinating new light upon the master's much-belabored visual work.

Featuring a selection of Picasso's paintings, sculptures and illustrations, the exhibition traces the impact of language on the artist's aesthetic. Words shape the works on a visible surface level and, more importantly, propel the subtle process of artistic innovation.

The exhibition is divided into four sections, guiding visitors through the earlier, more obvious engagements with writers and the written word before dropping them in the midst of more conceptual terrain. Near the entry, the theme is "Conversations," depicting the interchange of ideas between Picasso and his contemporaries. One wall hosts a series of works by Picasso and fellow cubist Georges Braque, the styles and compositions of the pieces mingling and overlapping in fast-paced visual banter.

Other works highlight Picasso's vibrant friendship with prolific French poets Guillaume Apollinaire and Max Jacob, who together made up the self-described "Picasso's Gang." An enclosed area at the gallery's heart is devoted to Picasso's correspondences with Gertrude Stein; the focal point is an audio track of Stein performing her "literary portrait" of Picasso. Stein's distinctively lilting voice ricochets around the gallery, adding an aural affirmation of Picasso's place at the center of a dynamic, creative aristocracy.

Farther into the gallery space is an area devoted to Picasso's almost authorial process of revising his paintings. The section gains its momentum from his 1943 painting "First Steps." Discernible underneath the fragmented image of mother and child are lines from earlier versions of the work, demonstrating a unique glimpse into his artistic process.

The full impact of the show, however, is not complete until its finale. The last area of the exhibition houses prints from Le chant des morts, a 1948 book of poems by Pierre Reverdy emblazoned with Picasso's bold red lithographs. Picasso's dense sweeps of color shape and surround Reverdy's hand-written text, the enigmatic printed forms mirroring the slashes and inkblots of the lettering. An ultimate synthesis of Picasso's engagement with art and writing, Le chant des morts succeeds in rendering the exhibition surprisingly fresh.

Picasso and the Allure of Language runs through Jan. 3, 2010 at the Nasher Museum of Art. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for children and free for members and Duke students. For more information visit www.nasher.duke.edu.