Pablo Picasso, Sultan Bank with Crossed Arms - 1923, oil on canvas.

「腕を組んですわるサルタンバンク」は、ピカソの豊潤な魅力を伝える名作の一つ。古代ギリシャ彫刻のような端正な顔立ちで、堂々と腰掛ける男性。難解なイメージがあれば、「意外と普通の絵」に映るかもしれないが、無論ただの肖像画ではない。

　サルタンバンクとは、縁日などで即興の芸を披露する大道芸人。生活が比較的安定しているサーカスのピエロなどと異なり、少人数で各地を放浪する。その姿に、地元スペインを出てパリで極貧生活を送った自らを投影したと考えられ、キュービスム以前の若き日の「バラ色の時代」によく描いたモチーフだ。ただ、本作にかつて漂っていた哀愁はなく、代わりに気高い人間の矜持（きょうじ）を感じさせる。ピカソ自身の変化も象徴的に表れていると言える。

　二十世紀を代表するピアニストのウラディーミル・ホロヴィッツ（1903 - 1989）が所有していたことも見逃せない。ウクライナ出身のホロヴィッツはロシア革命や戦争の影響で、若くして母国を去り、欧州を回って米国へ。ピカソ同様、放浪するサルタンバンクへの思い入れがあったのかもしれない。

(English) The Sultan with Crossed Arms is one of Picasso's masterpieces of luxury and charm. The man is seated regally, with the neat face of an ancient Greek sculpture. To an esoteric mind, the painting might seem 'surprisingly ordinary', but it is not just a portrait.

　Sultanbanks are street performers who perform impromptu tricks at fairs and other events. Unlike circus clowns, whose lives are relatively stable, they travel around the country in small groups. It is thought that he projected himself into this character after leaving his native Spain to live in extreme poverty in Paris, a motif he often depicted in the 'rosy days' of his pre-Cubist youth. However, there is none of the melancholy that once permeated this work but a sense of noble human pride. It could be said that Picasso's transformation is also symbolically expressed in this work.

　It cannot be overlooked that the work belonged to Vladimir Horowitz (1903-89), one of the leading pianists of the 20th century. Born in Ukraine, Horowitz left his homeland at a young age due to the Russian Revolution and war and travelled around Europe to the USA. Like Picasso, he may have had feelings for the wandering Sultan Bank.

Pablo Picasso.

When he was 14, his family moved to Barcelona. From this time, he showed an unusual talent for painting. In 1900 he went to Paris for the first time. After the 'Blue Period' and the 'Circus Period', he was introduced to the work of Cézanne and his theories on painting while working on The Daughters of Avignon and began to explore Cubism with Braque. He painted realistic portraits during the First World War and produced a monumental classical nude in the 20s, starting the 'neoclassical period'. From about 25, he was influenced by Surrealism but did not subscribe to the Surrealist view of a painting, which realistically reproduced material from dreams and the unconscious world. 36. The Spanish Civil War broke out. The following year, 37, he produced Guernica to protest against Franco and fascist violence in Spain. He remained in Paris during the Second World War, settled in Antibes and Vallauris in the south of France after the war, and then moved to Cannes. He continued to show new developments until his death and remained a leading figure in 20th-century art.

Pablo Picasso, Sultan Bank with Crossed Arms. - 1923, oil on canvas.

Picasso was deeply inspired by the art and culture of classical antiquity during his visit to Italy during the First World War. As a result, in 1918, he entered the neoclassical period, in which the subjects he painted had the grandeur of ancient sculpture. This work was done towards the end of this period and is, so to speak, the culmination of his career.

The artist depicted here is a street performer known as a saltimbanco. The term is derived from the Italian 'Sartare in banc' (one who jumps on a chair) and has long been used in France. They would go to fairs and other places to perform their improvised tricks.

The solid black lines, the subtle yet powerful contrasts of colour, the constant mastery of composition and the clear expression of Sultan's bench have a plastic beauty that recalls ancient Greek and Roman sculpture. Here, Picasso does not seem to paint out of pity for the comedian. Instead, the performer wears an exciting look, as if he were a hero leading the way into a new era. There seems to be an overlay of the artist's intention to overcome traditional beauty with a new technique resulting from his trial-and-error refinement.

It is known that this work once belonged to Vladimir Horowitz, one of the most famous pianists of the 20th century and a renowned art collector, who used it to decorate the living room of his house.

Pablo Picasso, Sultan Bank with Crossed Arms, 1923, oil on canvas. 

https://www.artizon.museum/collection/highlight/19417%7C66

Sultan Bank with Crossed Arms - Pablo Picasso Artizon Museum

https://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/106003

SCHUBERT - Impromptu n°3 (Horowitz) 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxhbAGwEYGQ

Horowitz's recital in Vienna (1987)

The Impromptu No. 3 in B flat major is nicknamed 'Rosamunde' because its theme is a variation of his incidental music. Schubert had already reused this theme in the String Quartet No. 13 in A minor, D. 804, also nicknamed 'Rosamunde'.

No one - not a single pianist, living or dead, plays this piece like him. The first time I heard it was in the historic public library in downtown Los Angeles on an old 33 1/3 LP, and when I listened to the passage played here at 3:31, I burst into tears. At that moment, I vowed not to die and leave this earth until I could learn to play this piece. It took me ten years of study and practice, and I kept my vow. I even played it on a concert programme with South Arkansas Symphony Orchestra members. I played two Schubert pieces. No matter how often I play this piece, this passage causes a ripple in my soul. This piece makes me imagine a conversation between Schubert and God. Schubert the high notes and God the low. The conversation is about Schubert begging for his life and for more time because he is sure his life will end soon. God persuades him to let go and prepare to go home, assuring him that he has composed everything he was meant to write. He also ensures that his name and life will not be forgotten and that he is one of those immortal beings that time cannot erase. I hear this intense and emotional conversation every time I play it.

The Paris Opera - A hall of fame in resonance - The Artizon museum in Tokyo