PABLO PICASSO AND WIFREDO LAM REUNITED AT GALERIE GMURZYNSKA IN NEW YORK
On April 22, 2026, Galerie Gmurzynska opened “Pablo Picasso and Wifredo Lam” with a private reception in its Fuller Building space, bringing together collectors, artists, and figures from across the cultural landscape for an evening centered on one of modern art’s most compelling artistic dialogues.
The exhibition, which spans six decades from 1918 to 1978, presents approximately 50 works across painting, fresco, works on paper, collage, and ceramics. The show places the practices of Pablo Picasso and Wifredo Lam into direct conversation, revisiting a creative exchange that began in Paris in 1938 and evolved into a lifelong friendship.
Among those in attendance were Diana Picasso, Eskil Lam, Grace Hightower, Katherine Embiricos, and Andrea Catsimatidis, alongside Galerie Gmurzynska co-owners Krystyna Gmurzynska and Mathias Rastorfer. The evening was hosted by Isabelle Bscher, with additional guests including Anna Alimani, Lucas Bscher, Janna Bullock, Bella Meyer, Chris Couri, Lucia Hwong Gordon, Margo Langenberg, Magnus Resch, R. Couri Hay, Untitled’s Indira Cesarine, among others.
Midway through the evening, Eskil Lam, son of Wifredo Lam, delivered opening remarks alongside Rachel Scott, Creative Director of Diotima and Proenza Schouler. Scott reflected on Lam’s influence on her recent collection, with select looks presented within the gallery space, extending the exhibition’s dialogue into contemporary fashion.
The exhibition traces the origins of Picasso and Lam’s relationship to their first meeting in Paris in May 1938, when Picasso introduced Lam to the city’s avant-garde circles. The encounter proved formative, contributing to Lam’s development of a distinct visual language that merges Cubism, Surrealism, and Afro-Caribbean spiritual symbolism, including references to Santería.
Between 1940 and 1946, the two artists exhibited together regularly at the Pierre Matisse Gallery in New York—also located in the Fuller Building—making this presentation a return to a historically resonant site. Notably, the last time their works were shown exclusively together was in 1939 at the Perls Gallery, marking Lam’s debut in the United States.
Galerie Gmurzynska’s exhibition follows the recent close of Museum of Modern Art’s retrospective “Wifredo Lam: When I Don’t Sleep, I Dream,” bringing several works previously on view at the institution into dialogue with Picasso’s practice. Highlights include Lam’s rare Étude pour La Jungle (1943), alongside works from his estate and elements of his indigenous art collection. Picasso is represented through significant pieces including two rare frescos created during his 1918 honeymoon in Biarritz, as well as works reflecting his sustained engagement with African art, such as Animaux naturels (Art Primitifs) (1943).
Installed within the same architectural context where both artists once exhibited, the exhibition underscores the enduring relevance of their artistic exchange—one rooted in cross-cultural influence, experimentation, and a shared commitment to expanding the boundaries of modern art.
Galerie Gmurzynska is located at Galerie Gmurzynska New York and is open Monday through Friday from 10AM to 6PM.
Opening photos: Michael Ostuni/PMC
