Frenchman Wins Picasso in Million-Euro Raffle for Alzheimer's Research

Ari Hodara, a 59-year-old software engineer from Paris, won a Picasso painting worth 1 million euros in a charitable raffle. The proceeds will support Alzheimer's disease research. The event sold 120,000 tickets at 100 euros each and featured Picasso's 'Tête de Femme' as the prize.

A Frenchman has emerged the lucky winner of a Picasso painting valued at 1 million euros, courtesy of a non-profit raffle held on Tuesday. Ari Hodara, a 59-year-old software engineer from Paris, was selected randomly from 120,000 entries at Christie's auction house in Paris. Each ticket was priced at 100 euros.

The raffle proceeds will bolster Alzheimer's disease research as part of the '1 Picasso for 100 euros' initiative that began in 2013 to support various charities. This year's coveted artwork, Picasso's 'Tête de Femme,' was painted in 1941 and featured a grey, white, and cream composition reflecting the era's somber mood yet hinting at hope.

With all 120,000 tickets sold for the first time in the event's history, organizers announced that after deduction of 1 million euros for the Opera Gallery, the painting's current owner, remaining proceeds of approximately 11 million euros will be donated to France's Fondation Recherche Alzheimer.

(With inputs from agencies.)