A Lifestyle blog based in Sonoma County, in the heart of Wine Country. Amber is an outspoken voice for local activism, local wine tourism, and more.

Dressing With...Picasso

Garcon a la Pipe, Pablo Picasso, 1905, rose period
Pablo Picasso while one of the most well known artists of the 20th century, is mostly known for his work in cubism. His paintings of women with distorted faces, breasts askew and eyes that endearingly remain piercing, it is clear that Picasso certainly saw things differently. In cubism, the subject is painted (or sculpted) with the use of shapes - often on top and within each other, nearly to the point of the subject becoming secondary and non-objective. In short, seeing objects in simple shapes.

However before there was cubism, there was Picasso and his rose period. Garcon a la Pipe was painted during this time, and the artist was finally coming out of the monochromatic melancholy fog of his blue period. Personally in my opinion, this painting falls somewhere between the two periods: The rosy pink and fleshy hues are quieted by young boys face, the blue breaks up the muddled hues adding visual interest.

While it is his nose that is highlighted, I find my attention often returning to his lips and eyes - is he puckering? Just...ever so slightly? Has he stolen his father's pipe, and is now full with a sudden sense of manhood? Perhaps that is why he sits the way he does: he's thought up some silly, slightly crude things to say the girls who pass by. Only...he isn't quite the man he thinks is, is he? He is awkward with the pipe, and is unsure how to hold it. Rather, could it be a moment of uncertainty that we are witnessing? His blue figure takes up much of the painting - almost half. So then, how is it that the floral wreath around his head - so similar to the background color - and lock of loose wisp of hair quickly becomes the most polarizing objects in the frame?


© A•Mused

This site uses cookies from Google to deliver its services - Click here for information.

A Mused Blog | A Northern California Sonoma County Blog