Athenaeum in La Jolla celebrates work of late French artist Francoise Gilot with new exhibit

The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library in La Jolla celebrated the opening of its latest exhibition, “Francoise Gilot: Lithographs: 1950-1990” with a reception Sept. 15. The show, featuring many never-before-exhibited lithographs by the late French artist and former La Jolla resident, is on view through Saturday, Nov. 11, at 1008 Wall St.

Gilot, born Nov. 26, 1921, had a career spanning eight decades, with works ranging from visual art to poetry and prose, including best-selling memoirs. Gilot met legendary artist Pablo Picasso when she was 21, the same year she had her first Paris exhibition. Gilot and Picasso raised their two children together until separating in 1953.

Gilot counted among her friends such leading artists as Matisse, Braque and Cocteau. In 1970, she married famed medical researcher Jonas Salk, developer of the polio vaccine, and lived for years in La Jolla.

The Athenaeum hosted a private reception and pop-up show in April 2022 to celebrate Gilot’s 100th birthday. She continued to paint until her death in June this year.

— La Jolla Light staff ◆