Marina Picasso, the granddaughter of the legendary Spanish artist, has put up for auction 126 unique ceramics created between 1947 and 1955.

Marina, the major inheritor of Piccaso’s estate does not have any good memories of her grandfather, and blames him for suicide of her brother, Pablito. The money raised at the auction at Sothebys next month (expected to be in the region of €1,400,000) will go to her various humanitarian foundations.

She admitted to me in an interview that she never wanted the inheritance, but in the end decided to renovate the house which contained hundreds of paintings and drawings. ‘It was in a terrible state with tubes of paint and paint brushes thrown on the the ground. I started to restore the house and to love it”, she says, but there were no happy memories here when her grandfather was alive. “I hated my grandfather but now I have done my mourning,” she continues.

Marina has not yet decided if she will sell the sumptious villa set in 1,200 m2 park land, but has already received an offer of €150 million for the property.

The sale of the ceramics, and eventually the house, is ‘the turning of the page”, says Marina. She adds “I was born in Cannes and even though I spend a lot of time in Geneva, I will always keep a home in Cannes. Selling the house is one of my projects. Life changes. My children are grown up and this is the way of turning the page on an already painful history.”

Earlier this month a painting sold for €158 million, the proceeds of which will go to one of her foundations. “In spite of everything, it is just a work of art. I can’t stop thinking that all the money can be used to help others”, she says.

Lead image from Musée Picasso Antibes