The discovery of the Guggenheim: Picasso loved dogs but canceled one

Pablo Picasso ((1881, Malaga – 1973, Mougins) loved dogs. Especially those in the flesh. Proof of this is the fact that for years he lived in absolute symbiosis with his “Lump”, the faithful German dachshund who, in spite of name he bore was anything but a rascal: he crouched in silence at the feet of the genius all day while he painted his masterpieces.

Yet x-rays don’t lie. And Picasso at least once eliminated a dog, albeit only with a brush. The singular purge was discovered – albeit indirectly – by the Guggenheim in New York which decided to dedicate a major exhibition («Young Picasso in Paris») to the Spanish artist on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of his death. Well, this exhibition also includes «Le Moulin de la Galette» (1900) which, upon analysis with X-ray fluorescence revealed an unexpected detail: a dark brown shape, in the lower left corner of the work. In reality that spot was born to give birth to a painted dog with a red bow tied around its neck.

The painting in question portrays a moment of celebration and encounter typical of the bohemian Paris of those years. We find ourselves in the ballroom of the Moulin de la Galette in Montmartre, a windmill opened as a cabaret for the nightlife of the 18th arrondissement. The participants are portrayed by Picasso with colorful dresses, showy hats, bright lipsticks that catch the eye and contrast the vibrant and suffused atmosphere of the dance floor. It is a dynamic and engaging painting that certainly tells us about the life of the young painter, excited and enthusiastic to be part of the city’s artistic and cultural scene. But why was the dog canceled?

«It is not uncommon to find singular figures looking at the viewer, seemingly acknowledging their presence. In the previous composition for Le Moulin de la Galette, the little dog in the foreground would have played this role. By eliminating it, Picasso focuses more attention on figures and space», says Megan Fontanella, curator of the exhibition at the Guggenheim.

The other aspect to consider is that this practice was nothing new for Picasso: many of his paintings examined and subjected to X-rays have in fact revealed hidden figures or renewed compositions. An example of this is «The Blue Room» (1901), in which the artist – according to some experts – would have painted over his old works due to the very high cost of the new canvases. Nothing compared to when – others claim – Picasso had to burn his early works to keep warm during times of extreme poverty in the early 1900s.