Lost Picasso portrait discovered in Capri basement, now valued at €6 million

The portrait, believed to depict Picasso’s muse Dora Maar, was found by a scrap dealer while cleaning a basement in Capri in 1962.

A painting is seen at a restoration laboratory in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024. An Italian family hopes to prove definitively that a painting discarded from a villa on Capri more than 60 years ago is a Picasso. (Photo: AP/Antonio Calanni)
A painting is seen at a restoration laboratory in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024. An Italian family hopes to prove definitively that a painting discarded from a villa on Capri more than 60 years ago is a Picasso. (Photo: AP/Antonio Calanni)

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Italian art experts have confirmed that a painting, once dismissed as "horrible" by its discoverer's wife, is an original work by the famed Spanish artist Pablo Picasso.

The portrait, believed to depict Picasso’s muse Dora Maar, was found by a scrap dealer while cleaning a basement in Capri in 1962.

According to The Guardian, Luigi Lo Russo, a scrap collector, discovered the painting by chance and took it to his home in Pompeii. For decades, the artwork hung in a cheap frame on his living room wall, its significance unknown.

The painting bore Picasso’s distinctive signature in the upper left corner, but Lo Russo, unfamiliar with the artist, did not realize its potential value.

It wasn’t until years later, when his son Andrea began to question the painting’s origins after studying art history, that the family sought expert advice. Renowned art investigator Maurizio Seracini, along with handwriting expert Cinzia Altieri, led a complex investigation.

Altieri, a member of the Arcadia Foundation's scientific committee, which specializes in authenticating art, confirmed that the signature on the painting was indeed Picasso’s.

"After extensive comparisons with Picasso's original works, there was no doubt that the signature was genuine," Altieri told The Guardian. The painting, now valued at €6 million (£5 million), is believed to have been created between 1930 and 1936, during one of Picasso’s visits to the southern Italian island of Capri.

Andrea Lo Russo, now 60, continued his father's quest to uncover the truth about the painting. Reflecting on the discovery, he shared how the family had once considered discarding the artwork: "My mother kept saying it was terrible and wanted to get rid of it."

Picasso’s connection to Dora Maar, a French photographer and painter who was his lover and muse, adds significant historical value to the piece. Experts believe the painting closely resembles Picasso’s well-known bust of Maar, further solidifying its authenticity.

Luigi Lo Russo, who passed away before learning of the painting's value, had unknowingly preserved a priceless masterpiece, which now holds both artistic and sentimental value for his family.