Lot Essay
During the second half of 1899 and the beginning of 1900 Picasso
executed a series of works which Josep Palau i Fabre refers to as Picasso's 'Black' period. Mostly drawings of interior scenes and portraits, some are so dark that it can be difficult to discern what exactly they represent. Fabre writes "...the dark shadows seem to invade the whole canvas, to such an extent that at times they make it difficult to make out the composition. That is what Picasso wants. He wants us to approach them and examine those shadows in greater detail, to come close to them, which is like approaching him. To penetrate these pictures one must make a great effort, both optically and in comprehension. Some reds, some yellows and some greens help us to decipher the whole." (Picasso Life and Work of the Early Years 1881-1907, Oxford, 1981, p. 173)
The present work which represents a hotel bedroom was perhaps executed slightly later in 1900, during Picasso's first trip to Paris with Carlos Casagemas and Manuel Pallarés. Although it contains elements of the 'tenebrism' described by Palau i Fabre, colour and light also play an important role. Rather than concentrate on the darkness itself Picasso has reversed his vision to express the light within the blackness, as he was to do during the later Blue Period.
Sold with a photo-certificate from Marina Picasso numbered 0684
executed a series of works which Josep Palau i Fabre refers to as Picasso's 'Black' period. Mostly drawings of interior scenes and portraits, some are so dark that it can be difficult to discern what exactly they represent. Fabre writes "...the dark shadows seem to invade the whole canvas, to such an extent that at times they make it difficult to make out the composition. That is what Picasso wants. He wants us to approach them and examine those shadows in greater detail, to come close to them, which is like approaching him. To penetrate these pictures one must make a great effort, both optically and in comprehension. Some reds, some yellows and some greens help us to decipher the whole." (Picasso Life and Work of the Early Years 1881-1907, Oxford, 1981, p. 173)
The present work which represents a hotel bedroom was perhaps executed slightly later in 1900, during Picasso's first trip to Paris with Carlos Casagemas and Manuel Pallarés. Although it contains elements of the 'tenebrism' described by Palau i Fabre, colour and light also play an important role. Rather than concentrate on the darkness itself Picasso has reversed his vision to express the light within the blackness, as he was to do during the later Blue Period.
Sold with a photo-certificate from Marina Picasso numbered 0684