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Portrait of Françoise in the UMMA. Photo by Vivian Leech
The UMMA and Picasso
The UMMA and Picasso
Vivian Leech
While some women may consider being a muse for one of the most famous painters in the world validating and brag-worthy, Francoise Gilot did not. She described it as feeling imprisoning rather than freeing (Gilot). Gilot’s the namesake of the Portrait of Francoise by Pablo Picasso, currently hanging in the University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA). The Portrait of Francois is not just a piece of art, but a tell-all on Francoise and Picasso’s relationship and the real impact of being a muse.
The UMMA boasts 53 pieces of Piacasso’s art, ranging from sketches to completed paintings (UMMA Exchange). When displayed, the artworks are hung in the Joan and Robert Tisch Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art (UMMA Exchange). The majority of Picasso pieces in the UMMA’s possession are gifts, the others being museum purchases (UMMA Exhange). The Carey Walker Foundation gifted the Portrait of Françoise to the UMMA in 1994 (UMMA Exchange).
I found it interesting that this gem laid against a blank, white wall with no excessive security or a crowd formed around it. Its humble display still grabbed my attention. Painted in 1949, the portrait of Francoise was eye-catching for its dark background and how it contrasted with the bright colors used for her features and her clothing (Portrait). The colors of this portrait hint at how Picasso thought of Francoise; how she shines on her own and is an independent character. This depiction of Francoise is concurrent to what close friends would say about her; how she “struck people as being powerful, friendly, and funny” (Force). Francoise brought vibrance and light to Picasso’s life as her youth sparked creativity and eased his fear of dying. Even though you can see her vibrancy through the color used, her posture and gaze in the 1949 piece at the UMMA lack interest – dulled because she is being portrayed in a limiting role that dims her identity to a superficial level (Portrait). Art history experts say he sucked those very traits out of her through his art (Ang). Francoise, an artist in her own right, reportedly begrudged Picasso’s portrayal of her in his work, as she disliked being famous as the subject of his work instead of for her own art (Ang). Even though Picasso always emulated her spirit and avoided painting her as someone she is not, she did not feel like herself when she was his muse. She was subjected to being the muse and nothing more, a role that stripped her own identity and creativity.
François Gilot pictured with Pablo Picasso in 1957. Photo by Robert Doisneau
Picasso has had a history with objectifying women, even done so straight forwardly through cubism (Cherian). The style he is most famous for was used to draw nude women and made these women seem more like objects and figurines rather than actual people (Christie’s). They were vessels of escapism and inspiration for his art, and Francoise’s awareness of this usage is what made her feel the most unhappy as a muse: she was well aware she was being objectified and not celebrated through these paintings (Gilot). Though confined when in this role, she ended up leaving Picasso and took charge of her image. She grew in her own art individually and built a platform through her book, Life With Picasso, where audiences were able to get to know Françoise on her terms.
Author and Photographer, Vivian Leech, pictured with the Portrait of Françoise
I sympathize deeply with Francoise as a woman who has felt her appearance put over all I have to offer inside. As a photographer, I not only have an extensive photo portfolio, but also have been the subject for photoshoots of my peers. I have seen works that I have modeled for foster more appreciation and fame than my own work. It feels as though the only entity of who I am that is cared for is my appearance. I know how it feels to have your art shadowed by the role of being the “muse”, a trait me and Françoise share. However, her ability to break away and craft her own image after her relationship with Picasso gives me and all female audiences hope for rebuilding an image outside objectification and the male gaze. When my artwork is concerned, I look to Françoise to control my own artistic and public reputation.
Works Cited
Ang, Marian. “Picasso’s Madonna: Portraits of Françoise Gilot.” Sothebys.Com, 31 Mar. 2023, www.sothebys.com/en/articles/picassos-madonna-portraits-of-francoise-gilot.
Cherian, Hannah. “Picasso’s Depiction of Women .” Picasso’s Depiction of Women, www.people.vcu.edu/~djbromle/modern-art/02/picasso-women/index. Accessed 21 Mar. 2024.
Doisneau, Robert. “Françoise Gilot et Pablo Picasso à Vallauris”, Getty Images. 1952
Force, Thessaly La. “Françoise Gilot, 97, Does Not Regret Her Pablo Picasso Memoir.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 11 June 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/06/11/t-magazine/francoise-gilot-picasso.html.
Gilot, Françoise, and Carlton Lake. “Life with Picasso”. McGraw-Hill, 1964.
Pablo Picasso. “Portrait of Francoise”. 1949, University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor.
“Pablo Picasso, One of History’s Most Influential Artists”, Christies,
www.christies.com/en/stories/pablo-picasso-a-style-guide-deb283fbb1474f59bda33a5997164ae 0. Accessed 21 Mar. 2024.
Pablo Picasso. “Portrait of Francoise”. 1949, University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor. Photo of Picasso’s Portrait of François. Vivian Leech. February 14th, 2024. Author’s personal collection.
Pablo Picasso. “Portrait of Francoise”. 1949, University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor. Selfie of Vivian Leech and Picasso’s Portrait of Francoise. Vivian Leech. February 14th, 2024, Author’s personal collection.
“Portrait of Françoise (Buste de Femme).” Ummawhitefade,
exchange.umma.umich.edu/resources/36947/view. Accessed 25 Mar. 2024.
University of Michigan Museum of Art Exchange, Search: Artist:"Pablo Picasso". Ummawhitefade. (n.d.). https://exchange.umma.umich.edu/quick_search/query?utf8=true&q=artist%3A%22Pablo+Piasso%22
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