For first time, Pablo Picasso’s portrait of muse and lover 'Femme nue couchée’ to go under hammer  

For the first time in nearly 100 years, the depiction of muse and lover by Pablo Picasso as a multi-limbed sea creature will go under the hammer.

The sensuous creation, which is also called'Femme nue couchée’ (Naked woman reclining), seems to have been created during the best years of the artist’s career.

It will star in New York Modern Evening Auction of Sotheby’s on May 17 andmay also get sold for over $60 million.

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It may also become one of the most valuable portraits of Marie-Thérèse Walter, which have beenoffered at an auction.

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Brooke Lampley, chair and head, global fine art sales, Sotheby’s, told the Guardian, “Picasso’s portraits of his golden muse Marie-Thérèse are undeniable hallmarks of 20th century art.”

Femme nue couchée was “a deeply lyrical ode to the artist’s unbound desire for Marie-Thérèse; with her fin-like, endlessly pliable limbs, the portrait continues to enchant as it perfectly captures Picasso’s muse as the ultimate expression of his genius”, Lampley added.

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Picasso’s affair with Marie-Thérèse Walter, was a secret for several years. The artist had fallen for the 17-year-old girl when he was 45. In 1927, he had noticed her through the window of Galeries Lafayette in Paris. She has also been an inspiration of several drawings, paintings and sculptures of Picasso.

In Femme nue couchée, Walter is depicted by the sensuous limbs of a sea-creature.

(With inputs from agencies)