① The modernist master can always be guaranteed to bring in the crowds.
② But even by his standards, the exhibition that opened at the Musée Picasso in Paris on Tuesday promises to be a world-beater.
③ It focuses on the work he did in 1932, his "Année Erotique".
④ Picasso had recently turned 50 and was infatuated with his young mistress, Marie-Thérèse Walter, an alluring blonde woman not even half his age.
⑤ In less than a week, between March 8th and March 14th, he painted four of his greatest portraits: "Nude, Green Leaves and Bust" (almost never before shown in public) plus"Nude in a Black Armchair", "The Mirror" and "Girl Before a Mirror".
⑥ Together they show Picasso's volcanic creativity when inspired by a muse he truly adored.
⑦ Whether you catch the show in Paris now, or in London next year when it moves to Tate Modern, book right away to avoid disappointment.
