Pablo Picasso's paintings are some of the world's most expensive works of art, sometimes fetching more than $100 million at auction. But anyone can now try their luck at nabbing one for just 100 euros ($116).
France's leading financial supporter of Alzheimer's research is raffling Picasso's 1941 painting Tête de femme (Head of a Woman), which is worth more than a million euros ($1.2 million).
Proceeds from the "1 Picasso for 100 euros" campaign will help fund research into Alzheimer's, a common form of dementia that is a leading cause of death worldwide.
Picasso's grandson Olivier Widmaier Picasso, a co-owner of the painter's estate, says his grandfather would have been pleased with the raffle.
"He was a very generous man. He was very discreet, but he loved to help his siblings, his family and friends, and also people who were in need because of the civil war in Spain, because of the Second World War in Europe," said the younger Picasso, who has authored biographies of his famous grandfather for screen and print. "For me, acting as a partner for the promotion is like continuing his path, continuing his generosity."
The raffle was launched by French television producer Péri Cochin, who's already held two previous editions, in coordination with the Picasso estate and Picasso administration. "We have a contract with them and they gave us the official authorization to do the charity raffle," said Cochin, a longtime friend of Olivier Picasso.
Claudia Borgogno from the Italian town of Ventimiglia won the still life Nature Morte (1921) for the inaugural 2020 edition, which raised 5.1 million euros ($5.9 million) for CARE International to rehabilitate wells and sanitary installations in Cameroon, Madagascar and Morocco.
In 2013, Jeffrey Gonano in Pennsylvania won L'homme au gibus (1914). That raffle raised 4.8 million euros ($5.6 million) for the International Association to Save Tyre to support traditional crafts in southern Lebanon.
The paintings are held at museums near the winners' homes, though Cochin notes that selling the works is an option. The winner "can go to any auction house and sell it there. And get the money, of course," she said.
But for the younger Picasso, keeping the painting — he owns a few Picassos himself — is priceless.
"I'm sure that the winner, if he puts the work in his living room, for example, will benefit from an emotion which is totally different from looking at a picture on a computer. There is an instant link and maybe a link with the artist himself," he said. "It's nice, especially in our very difficult times, to think that culture and art are maybe an escape."
The painting itself is a portrait of Dora Maar, who like Picasso was outspoken against fascism. The pair had a tumultuous relationship during which she inspired many of his masterpieces, like Weeping Woman (1937).
But Maar was much more than a muse. She was a trailblazing Surrealist painter and photographer who created provocative and experimental photomontages. Maar also documented Picasso creating Guernica (1937), considered his most political work. The massive grayscale painting, created during the Spanish Civil War, has long been celebrated as a cry against the horrors of war.
The younger Picasso's grandmother was Marie-Thérèse Walter, who Picasso left after the birth of their daughter (Maya, Olivier's mother) for Maar. Still, Olivier has defended his grandfather's troubled relationships with women.
About a third of the 120,000 tickets issued are still available. The winning ticket will be drawn at Christie's auction house in Paris, on April 14. After the draw, the Opera Gallery will receive a million euros out of the proceeds for the painting. The remainder will go to the Paris-based Alzheimer's Research Foundation.
This story was edited by Treye Green.
Copyright 2026 NPR
