Paloma Picasso Biography

Designer, businesswoman. Born April 19, 1949 in Vallauris on the French Riviera. The youngest child of master artist Pablo Picasso and his lover, artist and writer Françoise Gilot, Paloma was surrounded by artists from a very young age. Her name means "dove" in Spanish, and she was so named after the famous symbol her father designed for the International Peace Conference in Paris the year of her birth.

Paloma Picasso is represented in many of her father's works, such as Paloma with an Orange and Paloma in Blue.

Paloma's career began in 1968, when she was a costume designer in her native Paris. Some rhinestone necklaces she had created from flea market finds caused acclaim among critics, and she quickly enrolled in a jewelry course. Soon, Yves Saint Laurent asked her to design accessories to accompany one of his collections, and by 1971 she was working for the Greek jewelry company Zolotas.

In 1980, she began designing jewelry for Tiffany and Co., debuting with signature Xs and scribbles in gold and sterling silver. Soon after, she launched her own brand, Paloma Picasso, and created many perfumes and designer fashion accessories, including an eponymous scent and Mon Rouge, a dramatic scarlet lipstick that became her trademark.

In early 2001, Paloma Picasso moved to Lake Geneva in Switzerland. There, she founded the Lausanne-based Paloma Picasso Foundation, which aims to promote the works of her parents, particularly those of her mother whose artistic endeavors are little known in Europe.

She was married to Argentinean businessman Rafael Lopez-Cambil for 21 years. Soon after their divorce, she married French doctor Eric Thevenet. The couple has homes in Paris, London and Lausanne, Switzerland.

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