Pablo Picasso / Federico García Lorca
Chant funèbre pour Ignacio Sánchez Mejías
Pierre de Tartas, Paris, 1976
An exceptional deluxe exemplar of Chant funèbre pour Ignacio Sánchez Mejías, the celebrated livre d’artiste published in Paris by Pierre de Tartas in 1976, with text by Federico García Lorca and original illustrations by Pablo Picasso. Issued in large folio format, approximately 37 × 28 cm, this work ranks among the most elaborate late Picasso illustrated books, combining poetic homage, typographic refinement, and a remarkable range of original woodcut material.
This copy is one of the extremely rare examples printed on japon impérial, an especially prestigious support within the edition. It is unnumbered and was specially prepared for Pierre-Jean Mathan, placing it outside the regular numbered issue and firmly within the most desirable category of collaborator or specially enriched copies.
What makes this exemplar particularly important is the extraordinary additional material accompanying it, transforming it from an already rare deluxe issue into a uniquely enriched production archive and collector’s copy. It includes:
– a suite of coloured woodcuts on Arches
– a suite of woodcuts on japon nacré
– a double suite of woodcuts on silk
– a suite of woodcuts on handmade paper from Moulin Richard de Bas
– a suite of woodcuts in black on japon impérial
– an original print on coloured japon nacré
These multiple suites, printed on different luxury supports, offer a rare insight into the full graphic and material richness of the publication. Rather than presenting only the finished book, this ensemble preserves several parallel states and printings of Picasso’s woodcuts, revealing the publisher’s experimental approach and the exceptional care devoted to the most privileged copies.
The edition itself is highly sought after, but copies on japon impérial were reserved for only a very restricted circle and are seldom encountered, particularly with such an extensive and refined group of additional suites. The association with Pierre-Jean Mathan further enhances the significance of the piece, suggesting a direct connection to the editorial or production milieu of the publication.
A rare and museum-worthy example of one of Picasso’s major late illustrated books, this copy stands out for the nobility of its paper, the richness of its suites, and its special hors-commerce character. It is not merely a deluxe copy, but a highly privileged and unusually complete exemplar, preserving the work in one of its most sophisticated and desirable forms.