Françoise Gilot (b. 1921)

From the age of five, Francoise Gilot knew she wanted to be an artist. Born to a Parisian businessman and a watercolourist, Gilot studied law while secretly continuing her art. At the young age of 21, Gilot was already an accomplished artist in her own right during World War II. After meeting Gilot in a caf in the spring of 1943, Pablo Picasso, already a world-famous artist, fell madly in love with her. This meeting marked the beginning of a decade-long romance, during which she was surrounded by the titans of Modernism including Chagall, Braque and Matisse. Their long relationship bore two children - Claude and Paloma. Currently based in New York, Gilot was recently appointed an Officer of the Lgion d'Honneur, one of France's highest distinctions.