Staff of the Picasso Museum in Paris instals the works to be shown. [Provided to China Daily]

Shanghai

Pablo Picasso is visiting Shanghai and he'll be staying until the end of the year. Zhang Kun reports.

The largest exhibition of Pablo Picasso's works on the Chinese mainland starts this week at the China Pavilion in World Expo Park from Oct 18 to next January. Forty-eight paintings from all the important periods of the artist's life, sculptures and prints, have come from the Picasso Museum in Paris.

The tour is in aid of the museum's expansion project.

All the art, except one, are being exhibited in China for the first time. A portrait of Dora Maar made its first appearance in China in 1983, when French President Francois Mitterand visited, bringing 25 Picasso paintings with him.

Besides the famous pieces such as Young Girl With Bare Feet, the exhibition will also feature works closely related to the personal life of Picasso. Portraits for six of his seven lovers will be shown. One of most anticipated paintings is that of his young son Paul, aged four, dressed as a clown with his mother Olga, Picasso's first wife.

According to Xie Dingwei, president of the Tianxie Culture Exchanges, which brought the exhibition to Shanghai, the Picasso Museum expansion project needs a budget of 56 million euro ($77m) and the French government would cover 20 million euro.

The museum decided to launch a global tour of Picasso works to raise the rest. The paintings will return home in 2013, when the refurbishing is completed.

Tianxie paid almost 1 million euro for the 62 pieces, with the expenses covered by private and corporative donation, Xie said.

In order to make the exhibition more accessible, the company has set admission at 80 yuan ($13) on weekdays and 120 yuan on weekends and holidays.

The venue is a temporary hall of 1,000 square meters built in the China Pavilion. Close-circuit television working round-the-clock will ensure the security of the works, together with alarm systems and patrol dogs.

You can contact the writer at zhangkun@chinadaily.com.cn.