Original lithograph poster designed and printed by Atelier Mourlot.

Produced for one of Europe’s most influential theatre festivals founded by Jean Vilar, this original lithographic poster reflects Picasso’s enduring engagement with performance and the expressiveness of the human figure.

Printed at Atelier Mourlot in Paris, the image is based on Le Jeune Peintre (The Young Painter), a late motif that distils movement and psychological tension into a spare, forceful linear form. The figure’s mask-like face, exaggerated eyes, and ambiguous pose collapse the roles of painter, performer, and spectator into a single presence. Long associated with theatre, commedia dell’arte, and the idea of artistic alter ego, Picasso repeatedly turned to such figures as stand-ins for himself.

Created in the final year of his life, the image carries a poignant doubleness: youthful vitality paired with an acute awareness of artistic legacy. Designed by Henri Deschamps and unique within Picasso’s poster production, the work exemplifies his late graphic language—direct, unembellished, and charged with theatrical intensity—affirming his belief that art made for public circulation could retain profound expressive authority.