Picasso Night of Black and White to Benefit The Wellness Community Thursday, January 17, 2008 at The Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey

Marina del Rey, CA (PRWEB) December 18, 2007 -- The Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey (www.ritzcarlton.com/en/properties/marinadelrey/default.htm) is proud to announce an exclusive exhibition presenting original works of art from one of the earliest illustrated folios of Pablo Picasso. The black and white artwork will be unveiled at a private opening night reception on Thursday, January 17th from 6:00 ? 8:00 P.M. for media and invited guests. The evening will include a silent auction of the ?Picasso in the Penthouse Package with bids commencing at $10,000. All of the proceeds from the silent auction will benefit The Wellness Community-West Los Angeles (www.twc-wla.org).

When traveling, you dont always have time to go to an art gallery so we are bringing the art to you,? said Robert Thomas, General Manager. We wanted to create a setting where you could enjoy a specialty cocktail, unwind with the lounge DJ and appreciate the amazing art collection surrounding you.?

The Lobby Lounge will transform into a temporary art gallery with 16 works of art from Picassos Spatial Drawings: The rare woodcut designs from the Hélène Chez Archimède series.? Masterworks, The Institute for Works on Paper will provide the artwork, as well as a selection of Picassos original tools and Art Advisors who can provide insight about the artist and the background on this special series. The Picasso artwork is available for purchase through Masterworks or directly from the hotel, and will remain on display through May 2008. A new collection will be installed in summer 2008.

PICASSO IN THE PENTHOUSE? PACKAGE SILENT AUCTION INCLUDES:

?    One featured work of art by Pablo Picasso

?    Two-night stay in The Ritz-Carlton Presidential Suite

?    Luxurious Spa Treatment for two

?    Decadent dinner for two in Jer-Ne Restaurant

ABOUT THE WELLNESS COMMUNITY-WEST LOS ANGELES

The Wellness Community-West Los Angeles (TWC-WLA) was founded in1982 by Harold Benjamin, Ph.D. and was the first of what has become a national non-profit organization with twenty-two facilities. TWC is dedicated to providing free support, education, and hope to people with cancer and their loved ones.

Through participation in professionally led support groups, educational workshops, and mind/body classes, people affected by cancer learn vital skills that enable them to regain control, reduce isolation and restore hope regardless of the stage of their disease. By sharing with others who are fighting the illness or who have recovered from it, people with cancer gain hope and a renewed will to live. All programs and services are provided at no cost to participants.

ABOUT THE HÉLÈNE CHEZ ARCHIMÈDE SERIES

Hélène Chez Archimède remains one of the most evocative due to its scope and purpose. The folio was commissioned by Ambroise Vollard, the dealer for the Impressionists, who intended to have Picasso illustrate Andre Suares play Hélène Chez Archimède.? Since his Rose Period, the act of making art for Picasso became a way to explore its very nature. With that in mind, one can discover the underlying significance of the 22 woodcut designs for HCA. They were both answers to questions posed earlier, juxtaposing two and three-dimensional forms of expression, and bold statements about the ambiguous visual interpretation of linear drawings. Picasso worked to dissect structure by rendering straight, flat, solid, spherical, elliptical and rough shapes on paper. This explosive quest into the nature of dimension in art is the result of the extraordinary compositions in the HCA series. He employed human figures, chairs, tables, railings, musical instruments and more as his allies of discovery.

To execute the woodcuts properly, Picasso and Vollard agreed to have Georges Aubert, the greatest wood-engraver in France at that time, carve the blocks under the artists close scrutiny. Aubert was entrusted with an earlier project for which he produced the woodcuts for Picasso's illustrations to "Le Chef d'oeuvre inconnu,? perhaps the most celebrated illustrated artists book of the last century. Vollard did not see Hélène Chez Archimède through to its conclusion, and the carved blocks for the project were put into storage. In 1955, the Nouveau Cercle Parisien du Livre, an independent group of Parisian bibliophiles, obtained the woodblocks. With Picasso's consent, they produced a sumptuous livre dartiste in a strictly limited edition of 240 unbound copies, only100 of which went on sale to the public. None of these works were signed.

ABOUT THE RITZ-CARLTON, MARINA DEL REY

The Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey (www.ritzcarlton.com/en/properties/marinadelrey/default.htm), the only waterfront AAA Five Diamond property in Los Angeles offers a stylish, convenient setting just five miles from the Los Angeles International Airport. With 304 award-winning rooms and suites and acclaimed restaurant Jer-Ne, the luxury property has furthered its reputation for excellence with the launch of the new Spa, which is open to hotel guests, local residents and out-of-town visitors. For more information and reservations, call toll-free at 800-241-3333, the hotel directly at 310-823-1700 or access The Ritz-Carlton Web site at www.ritzcarlton.com.

Photos available upon request

Contact:

Christiana Simpson

Interim Public Relations Manager

4375 Admiralty Way

Marina del Rey, CA 90292

Tel: (310) 574-4301

Fax: (310) 821-8421

Cell: (310) 913-5639

Email: christiana.simpson @ ritzcarlton.com

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