Hunk of Skin by Pablo Picasso

PICASSO, Pablo. Hunk of Skin. The Pocket Poet Series, Number Twenty-Five. San Francisco, City Light Books, 1968.

First US edition, featuring Pablo Picasso’s poetry in the original Spanish alongside the English translation by Paul Blackburn.

Penned in Cannes on 8 and 9 January 1959, the poem Trozo de Piel, or Hunk of Skin, reflects Picasso’s yearning for his childhood in Malaga, evoking memories of his birthplace. This first US edition features an introductory note by the Spanish writer and Nobel laureate in literature Camilo José Cela y Trulock (1916-2002).

Paul Blackburn (1926-1971) was a prominent American poet and translator, particularly noted for his translations from Spanish. In addition to translating Picasso’s work, he gained recognition for his renditions of the medieval epic Cantar de Mio Cid, the poetry of Federico García Lorca and Octavio Paz, and the short stories of Julio Cortázar.

Duodecimo, pp. 40; bilingual text; fine in the original red and yellow wrappers.