Picasso’s Household Is at Odds With His Work Turning Into NFTs

But like anything that seems too good to be true, the Picasso heirs may have announced the news of their patriarch’s resurfacing art before clearing it with the rest of the family. The Paris-based Picasso Administration manages works held by five of Picasso’s living heirs, including Maya Widmaier Picasso, Claude Picasso, Paloma Picasso, Marina Picasso, and Bernard Ruiz-Picasso. And the Administration is set up in such a way that it has the power to instantly shut down any potential mishandling of Pablo’s intellectual (or physical) property. Claude, the family’s official administrator, vehemently rejects his niece’s and her son’s plan, which means any NFTs created in the name of Pablo Picasso would technically be counterfeit, and fake art—even if its authenticity rests on a technicality—doesn’t do well at auction.

As of late last week, the family announced that they wouldn’t be selling (or even revealing) any works of digital art linked to Picasso’s work after all. In fact, the Picasso Administration’s homepage is stamped with a bold announcement that says (in French): “Mrs. Marina Ruiz Picasso, Mr. Florian Picasso, and the administrator of the Picasso Estate, Mr. Claude Ruiz Picasso, as well as the Picasso Administration would like to clarify that there is no “Picasso” NFT” authorized by the Picasso Estate. NFTs by Florian Picasso and his collaborators were his own creation, independent of any claim vis-a-vis Pablo Picasso and his works.”

Cyril Noterman, Florian’s longtime business manager, admitted to the Associated Press: “Maybe we should have been a bit more clear from the beginning.” That may be an understatement, as one of the most significant draws to this specific sale was that it would be accompanied by an auction, hosted by Sotheby’s, of the ceramic bowl that inspired the crypto-art project. The renowned auction house, however, denied any involvement with the NFT aspect of the sale. In a statement to the Associated Press, Matthew Floris, a Sotheby’s spokesman, said, “Sotheby’s has clarified that it will not be selling an NFT of a work by Pablo Picasso.”

Luckily for the Picassos, scandal never managed to hurt their family name, and this one—even with obvious undertones of greed and fraud—is hardly an exception. In fact, Picasso family squabbles may even be good for business, but until the next one unfolds in the public eye, only time and appreciating prices will tell. Florian still plans on selling his NFTs on Origin Protocol later—perhaps when all of this blows over, and the public is even more interested in seeing what the young Picasso has produced.