A rare Pablo Picasso portrait valued at more than €1 million is being offered in an unprecedented global charity raffle that allows anyone, anywhere in the world, to participate for just €100 a ticket as part of a fundraising campaign for Alzheimer’s research. The initiative, titled “1 Picasso for 100 Euros,” was launched by the French Alzheimer’s Research Foundation and has the backing of Picasso’s family and estate, marking one of the most ambitious art-for-charity efforts in recent times.
The painting up for grabs, Tête de femme, is a 1941 gouache-on-paper portrait created by Picasso during a turbulent period in his life and career. The work was painted in his Left Bank studio in Paris at the height of the Nazi occupation — the same space where he later worked on Guernica — and reflects the somber atmosphere of the era with darker tones than many of his more familiar pieces. It has been authenticated by Picasso’s estate and comes from the collection of Opera Gallery, which is partnering on the raffle.
Organisers aim to sell up to 120,000 tickets online at €100 each, with all proceeds directed to the Fondation Recherche Alzheimer to bolster scientific studies into Alzheimer’s disease, a neurodegenerative condition that affects millions of people worldwide and currently has no cure. The draw will take place at Christie’s auction house in Paris on 14 April 2026, and if ticket sales fall short of the target price of the painting, participants will be reimbursed.
Picasso’s grandson, Olivier Picasso, has publicly supported the initiative, describing it as a natural extension of the artist’s legacy of quiet generosity. He said his grandfather helped many people throughout his life — including friends and relatives during times of hardship such as the Spanish Civil War and World War II — and that the raffle’s aim of supporting Alzheimer’s research resonates deeply with his family. Given rising global life expectancy and the increasing prevalence of dementia, he noted, funding research into neurodegenerative diseases is more urgent than ever.
The concept for the raffle originated with Péri Cochin, a French television producer and entrepreneur, who envisioned an art-centred fundraising model that would appeal to a global audience. She reached out to Olivier Picasso and, once approval was secured from the Picasso administration and estate, secured Tête de femme from Opera Gallery to serve as the prize. Organisers say this is the first time a work of such high value by Picasso has been used in a worldwide raffle solely for charity.
This charity project follows two earlier successful raffles in 2013 and 2020 that also used original Picasso works to raise funds for humanitarian causes, together generating more than €10 million. Past winners included a young American art enthusiast who won a Picasso drawing and later lent it to a museum, and an Italian accountant who received a Picasso painting as a Christmas gift from her son.
With ticket sales now open online, the raffle has drawn interest from art lovers and philanthropists alike, offering a rare intersection of high art, philanthropy and public participation. Organisers hope that by making the chance to own a Picasso accessible to a wide audience, they can both raise significant funding for Alzheimer’s research and inspire new models of charitable giving tied to cultural heritage.
