When you visit our framing shop in east London, we will be very happy to give you advice about the right type of frame to complement your artwork, should you need any guidance. The frame is an important decision; the right choice will enhance the work without competing with it, and also protect the artwork and ensure it can be safely hung.
The very expensive painting discovered in a cheap frame
Sometimes even the work of the greatest artistic geniuses in history is not given the frame to do it justice. The Guardian reports that a portrait believed by experts to be by Picasso spent several decades hung in a cheap frame on the wall of a junk dealer’s home in Pompeii.
Luigi Lo Rosso found the rolled up canvas when he was clearing out the cellar of a home in Capri in 1962 and took it home. Despite his wife taking a dislike to the image, it hung on the wall in a light coloured frame that is clearly low quality and showing signs of wear and tear.
Unloved cubist portrait sparks expert investigations
The painting is a distorted head and shoulder portrait of a woman in a blue dress with long dark hair, with a red and grey background. Despite bearing the artist’s signature in the top left hand corner, the artwork was unrecognised by Lo Rosso, who did not have any knowledge of art history.
The identity of the artist was finally suspected by Lo Rosso’s son Andrea, who had begun to educate himself about art. This led to the family seeking an expert opinion to confirm the origin of the painting. After years of detailed investigations, the signature on the painting has been verified as Picasso’s, and the artwork has been valued at £5 million.
Cinzia Altieri, a graphologist and member of the scientific committee of the Arcadia Foundation, told the Guardian: “After all the other examinations of the painting were done, I was given the job of studying the signature.”
“I worked on it for months, comparing it with some of his original works. There is no doubt that the signature is his. There was no evidence suggesting that it was false.”
The artist’s muse
The portrait is believed to be of a woman called Dora Maar, a French photographer and painter who had once been Picasso’s mistress. The artist was known to be a frequent visitor to Capri, a small Mediterranean island off the south west coast of Italy. He has also produced sculptures and other artworks featuring Maar.
Andrea Lo Rosso, whose father has since died, explained: “My father was from Capri and would collect junk to sell for next to nothing. He found the painting before I was even born and didn’t have a clue who Picasso was. He wasn’t a very cultured person.”
“While reading about Picasso’s works in the encyclopedia I would look up at the painting and compare it to his signature. I kept telling my father it was similar, but he didn’t understand. But as I grew up, I kept wondering.”
The final word
Despite the good news, the family have still not had a response from the Picasso Foundation, an organisation based in Malaga. Until one of their members has authenticated the experts’ claims, the painting will not be officially recorded as a Picasso. The evidence is due to be presented to the Foundation by the president of Arcadia, Luca Marcante.
Lo Rosso commented: “I am curious to know what they say. We were just a normal family, and the aim has always been to establish the truth. We’re not interested in making money out of it.”
Marcante believes there may be two versions of the work, explaining: “They are probably two portraits, not exactly the same, of the same subject painted by Picasso at two different times. One thing is for sure: the one found in Capri and now kept in a vault in Milan is authentic.”
So, there you have it. It may not be necessary to choose the most expensive frame to hang your artwork, but the frame should complement the colours, style, and overall mood of the work. You never know if it could make your fortune one day…