Help with print

[4keeps707]

Hi..I was wondering if someone could tell me what kind of print this is? I was thinking it was a poster but I see brush strokes on the black. And the creases and veining on the picture seems odd. I have hardly any knowledge of art except I think I am a bit good at identifying water color and oil but not good at all in prints, lithographs, etchings etc. Walking out with it, someone said it was a watercolor..huh? which, made me curious and had me looking at it more closely. Now I have no clue as to why I see brush strokes and veining. Not sure if it had been rolled up would it have contributed to that? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

[4keeps707]

Thank you argon38..I never saw these links and very helpful, yet, it just added more confusion as to what I have. Mine, could be that of a printed poster as I originally thought, it was the cracks that I was curious about and what may have caused it. I know I was asking alot without seeing it in person, but I thought I would try this board to see what, if any input would be provided. 

[argon38]

Have you examined the artwork under magnification? Can you see tiny dots (random or otherwise)?

http://www.stonescrayons.com/ink-modification 

[4keeps707]

yes I have. No uniformed dots anywhere. but I can see brush marks on the black and goldish color visually and is glossy. I noticed on some of the links provided, there is more pinkish color on face and neck areas than mine. Size and that are probably only difference I can see at this moment.

[argon38]

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@4keeps707 wrote:

No uniformed dots anywhere.

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How about random dots? The dots on a hand-pulled lithograph wouldn't be uniform (it's mass-market offset lithography which produces the uniform arrays). If there are no dots at all  then we're looking at some printing technique other than lithography.

[sonomabarn67]

https://www.cahiersdart.com/en/art-books/catalogues-raisonnes/pablo-picasso-by-christian-zervos/ 

If one could get into this, I'm sure the secrets of this print would be revealed.

[argon38]

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@sonomabarn67 wrote:
If one could get into this, I'm sure the secrets of this print would be revealed.

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That catalogue can be yours for just 25,000 euros!

https://fineartmultiple.com/pablo-picasso-pablo-picasso-by-christian-zervos/ 

I was about to suggest this site:

https://picasso.shsu.edu/  

(From what I can gather it's still free to use, but you need to contact the site owner for a username and password.)

[argon38]

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@argon38 wrote:

I was about to suggest this site:

https://picasso.shsu.edu/  

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Sorry, I  messed up that link. This one works:

https://picasso.shsu.edu/ 

[4keeps707]

I took it out of frame again to see if there were any dots, prior I was looking thru the glass at it. I did see on some areas where the edge of black is on some areas, dots, where its feathered out and they could be uniformed. Anywhere else I'm not seeing that and not sure about random dots. Would they be black as well? Not sure what I'm looking for but no black dots anywhere else. In the pinkish areas there are speckled pink dots here and there. Blue areas none that I can see. Gold could be speckled at feathered edges.  Some areas under the black, I can see the pinkish color and black over it. I see how this could be difficult. But maybe by your description, this could be a offset print going by what I see by the feathered edge of black color?  

[argon38]

These are the sort of irregular dot patterns you would expect to see in a hand-pulled lithograph:

http://www.graphicsatlas.org/identification/?process_id=57#magnification (click on gray side-arrows to scroll through photos)

whereas these are the regular rows of dots which you would find on an offset-lithograph ( = mass-market reproduction):

http://www.graphicsatlas.org/identification/?process_id=46#magnification  (again, click on gray side-arrows for more)

(Hope this helps, but it's my last post for today. I'm being plagued by log-in issues and disappearing reply buttons.)

[4keeps707]

Those links were very helpful ! Great examples showing what could happen when put on coated paper, which is why I have those cracks/damage! Really appreciate you taking the time to explain and share. 

[sonomabarn67]

That is starting to sound like a screen print.

[4keeps707]

Oh no....sonomabarn67.  Can you explain to me why that is? I am so lost! And I thought I was getting closer. Ugh....

[sonomabarn67]

Screen prints will leave artifacts as the screen deposits thin/fade on the edges. These can look like "dots". do you have a loupe?

[4keeps707]

i do have a loupe but I don't really know what I'm seeing when looking. Though I did see both what I thought was uniform dots at edges where it feathers out of some black and gold areas . The pinkish color seem to be random dots here and there. But under some areas of the black , I can see the pinkish/gold color underneath or maybe it visa versa the way it was printed.  Sorry, but I am not good at this at all. I apologize. I did look at other prints I have and its pretty clear when looking thru the loupe that it is indeed a print of sorts. Im just having a hard time with this. 

[argon38]

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@sonomabarn67 wrote:

That is starting to sound like a screen print.

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Could be, but there might also be something in the idea of it being a woodblock print. At least, the owner of this one took theirs to a named gallery, and that's what they were told:

https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/picasso-woodcut-blue-girl-posthumus-1751895224 

They also seem to have been told (rightly or wrongly) that theirs was a posthumous print, not a lifetime impression.

OP's best approach might be to take it to a gallery themselves to have someone inspect it in person. It's hard to be sure of anything, given all the conflicting information out there.