Le Rêve

Le Rêve (The Dream) is a 1932 oil painting (130 x 97 cm) by Pablo Picasso, depicting his 24-year-old mistress Marie-Thérèse Walter. On January 24, 1932, it is reported to have been completed in one afternoon. It is from Picasso's distorted representations period, with simple contours and clashing colors reminiscent of early Fauvism.

Unlike his later companion Dora Maar, who Picasso frequently depicted as tortured or menacing, Marie-Thérèse is usually depicted in his works as blonde, sunny, and cheery. Picasso made several works with eroticism aspects, and the erotic content of this iconic artwork is frequently recognized, with critics pointing out that Picasso painted an erect penis, apparently signifying his own, in the upturned face of his 22-year-old model. Le Rêve was sold in a private sale in March 2013 for $155 million, making it the sixth most expensive painting ever sold at the time. As of 2016, this is the second-highest price ever paid for a Picasso painting, behind Les Femmes d'Alger (Women of Algiers), which sold for $179.4 million in May 2015.

English Title: The Dream
Year: 1932