Henriette Theodora Markovitch, better known as Dora Maar (Paris, 1907-1997), is remembered most for having been the lover and muse of the great Picasso; a woman of rare beauty and enigmatic personality who had seduced the leading painter of the century and, subsequently abandoned, had sunk into madness, living cut off from the world for the remaining 50 years of her life.“Sacrificed to the Minotaur”, “Segregated with her musty phantoms”, “Dora, painted tears” were some of the titles in the newspapers when her goods were cold at auction after her death.
But Dora Maar was much more than this: she was also and above all an extraordinary artist in her own right, and the exhibition presented by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia from 8th March to 14th July – one of the events in the Spring at Palazzo Fortuny programme – aims to highlight the singular talent of Dora Maar. Entitled Dora Maar. Despite Picasso, this is the first show to be dedicated to the photographer in Italy; the project is by Daniela Ferretti and has been curated by Victoria Combalía, a scholar who has dedicated much time to studying Maar. Thanks to loans from important museums and private collections, the exhibition – comprising over 100 works, including some unpublished works by the artist of great interest – examines the career and personality of Dora Maar. She was certainly a complex and tormented woman as portrayed in Picasso’s pictures, but also acute, intelligent and politically involved. She had a multi-faceted personality and had many sides to her, as well as being a great photographer.
Curated by Victoria Combalia
Scientific coordination: Gabriella Belli
Layout: Daniela Ferretti