Ari Hodara, a 58-year-old resident of Paris, France, got a call on Tuesday. The voice on the other end told him he had won a raffle. The prize? A Picasso painting worth 1 million euros ($1.1 million).
Hodara described himself as an art enthusiast who is a fan of Pablo Picasso. He bought a charity raffle ticket for 100 euros ($117) over the weekend.
The painting is called Head of a Woman. Picasso painted it with gouache (a type of paint similar to watercolor) in 1941. It depicts another artist, Dora Maar. She was a French painter and photographer.
Raffle organizers say they sold all 120,000 tickets worldwide, bringing in 12 million euros ($14 million). Of that, 1 million euros will go to the Opera Gallery in Paris, the former owner of the painting. The rest will be donated to a foundation based in Paris that supports medical research into Alzheimer’s disease.
The “1 Picasso for 100 euros” charity raffle has taken place twice before, once to benefit cultural work in Lebanon and once for water and hygiene programs in Africa.
David Nahmad, an art collector who sold a Picasso in a previous raffle, thinks that Picasso would have liked the public raffles.
“Picasso was very generous. He gave paintings to his driver, his tailor,” Nahmad says. “He wanted his art to be collected by all kinds of people, not only by the super-rich.”
Ali Hodara is a sales engineer. He says he found out about the raffle during a meal at a restaurant.
“I was surprised,” Hodara explained on a call with the auctioneers. “But I’m very happy because I’m very interested in painting, and it’s great news for me.”
French journalist Peri Cochin organized the raffle. She says it was convenient the winner lived in Paris, despite tickets being sold worldwide.
“It’s going to be very easy for us to deliver the painting, so we’re happy,” she told the BBC. Picasso lived and painted in Paris for over 40 years.
Hodara says he plans to keep and enjoy the painting for now.
