Marie-Thérèse Walter Biography

Marie-Thérèse Walter, born on the 13th of July, 1909. She was a model, athlete, and lover to Pablo Picasso throughout the 19th century. Although she had not been formally educated, she was “well brought up” and was knowledgeable of society.(1) She was born in Le-Perreux-Sur-Marne, and later moved to Paris. Spotted by Pablo Picasso because she “had an interesting face”(2), she would become his muse for many paintings.

During her time with Picasso, Marie-Thérèse was the subject of copious portraits ranging from sexual to sensual, and one even encompassing a near death experience for the young woman. During the year of 1932, Picasso painted a multitude of these portraits of Marie-Thérèse, making her one of his most frequent subjects in his portfolio. She became his muse despite the fact that he was married to a Russian-Ukrainian dancer.(3) For Picasso, Marie-Thérèse was a breath of fresh air. She was an athlete, not traditionally beautiful, and -most intriguing of all- young. "Picasso, 28 years older than Marie-Thérèse,"(4) was besotted by the young blonde immediately, and said that he had dreamt of her.(5) Their age difference was presumably a large part of the appeal for Pablo Picasso, while Marie-Thérèse was more interested in his art and style than looks.(6)

In many of the works of 1932, Marie-Thérèse was in the nude. She inspired Picasso to finally resume his mastery of sculpture after a hiatus of 14 years. (7) In these years he created many objects (paintings and sculptures) with Marie-Thérèse likeness hidden amongst them, not able to show her fully because of the secrecy of their involvement.(8)

[caption id="attachment_164554" align="aligncenter" width="1102"] Pablo Picasso Fluffy Haired Woman, 1964[/caption]

As a result of their lengthy affair, Marie-Thérèse became pregnant with Picasso’s illegitimate child. As all illegitimate children tend to do, Marie-Thérèse’s child’s existence created a rift between Olga Khokhlova (Picasso’s wife) and Pablo himself like never before.(8) Throughout the pregnancy, Marie-Thérèse was cared for by Picasso, but not visited for a long time. For Marie-Thérèse, the act of eloping with Picasso was not too troublesome, as she always had a quiet life with him away from his family.(9) Together they loved their daughter María de la Concepción, and Picasso had her in many portraits. Picasso and Marie-Thérèse had an agreeable pact not to cause trouble in the outside world with news of their involvement with each other, even if it was shown through his work. After many years of being parents to their daughter Maya, the couple split ways when Picasso found a new lover, Dora Maar.(10) Though they had a lively and forbidden romance, Pablo and Marie-Thérèse were no longer a favorable match. Marie-Thérèse tragically died by her own hand in 1977, according to her grandchildren.(11)