Alfred Lambert, Paris (acquired by 1973)
Acquired by the present owner by 1975

Picasso Project, ed., Picasso's Paintings, Watercolors, Drawings and Sculpture, The Blue Period - 1902-1904, Barcelona and Paris, San Francisco, 2011, no. 1901-526, illustrated p. 1

The work is in excellent condition. Executed on buff colored paper. The top edge of the sheet is deckled and faint signs of mat staining are visible to the extreme outer edges of the composition. There is also a minor amount of transparent adhesive visible on the extreme bottom and right edges from a previous mounting. The sheet is very slightly time darkened and all smudging to the medium appears to be original to the artist's technique.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
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The current work exemplifies the theme of poverty, an important subject that Picasso began exploring in 1901 during his second trip to Paris, the beginning of his Blue Period. His Parisian compositions were essentially mementos of his visit and provided him with fresh images that he could later contemplate when he returned to Barcelona in the beginning of 1902.

“I began to paint in blue, when I realized Casagemas had died.” (Ingo F. Walther, Impressionist Art, 1860-1920, Cologne, 1993, p. 15) The 'Blue Period' is a record of Picasso's grievance over the suicide of his friend, the painter Carlos Casegamas, and the state of society in which he lived. From 1902 to 1903, Picasso focused on the destitute life of members of the underclass—dressed in rags, often in a feeling of absolute misery and despair, but elevated by the painter's compositions to subjects imbued with dignity (see Fig. 1)

He focused on street scenes, café life and brothels, but he also went out of his way to explore lesser-known dimensions of both Paris and Barcelona. Pierre Daix believes that Picasso's visit to the women's prison of Saint Lazar was prompted by the artist's patron at the time, the State advisor Olivier Sainsère. Indeed, forbidden by his wife to acquire Picasso's depictions of prostitutes, Sainsère pushed the artist to take interest in the contentious theme of women's incarceration.

La Mendiante encapsulates Picasso's view of sadness inherent in his work: “If we demand sincerity of an artist, we must remember that sincerity is not to be found outside the realm of grief” (Patrick O'Brian, Picasso: Pablo Ruiz Picasso : a biography, 1994, p. 105).