Conservation research at New York’s Guggenheim Museum has uncovered a small dog hidden beneath the surface of an early Pablo Picasso painting Le Moulin de la Galette (c. 1900), the highlight at the museum’s Young Picasso in Paris exhibition that celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of Picasso’s death. The painting depicts a social gathering at the titular dance hall, a venue frequented by Parisian artists and painted by impressionist artists such as Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and reflects Picasso’s interest in the aspect of modern life.
According to a press release of the exhibition, technical imaging has revealed a lapdog sitting on a chair on the bottom left of the painting, suggesting that it was included at an early stage but later covered up by the artist. Such compositional changes were to become a frequent practice of the artist.
