If you are looking for famous paintings by Picasso, you have probably heard of “The Old Guitarist” and “Garçon à la Pipe.” However, you may not be aware of other famous works by this French artist. If you are unfamiliar with these works, read this article to learn about them. It will also give you some information on the history and significance of the paintings.
The Old Guitarist
One of Picasso's most famous paintings, The Old Guitarist, was discovered to contain a hidden layer of art. It was x-rayed in 2001 and researchers deciphered it to reveal three separate figures. One of them was a seated woman with her head turned to the left. The other depicted a young girl with a chin tucked behind her ear and a kneeling boy. A third figure was a profile of a child. Despite being so beautiful, this layer of the painting isn't likely to return to the market anytime soon.
The guitar occupies a large symbolic space in this artwork. It carries an ambiguous sense of sadness. The old man has no untorn clothes and no chair. His guitar, however, is his only possession and could represent hope. It is this ambiguous meaning that makes the old man's guitar so important. While the guitar itself might not be of any particular value to the artist, it can be an emblem of hope for those who would view it.
Garçon à la Pipe
The painting Garçon à la Pipe was created by Pablo Picasso when he was twenty-four. It depicts a young Parisian boy wearing a pipe and garland and holding a flower-covered pipe in the wrong hand. The subject of the painting is a teenager who is likely to be hanging out with various types of local people, including delinquents, actors, and musicians.
When Picasso painted Garçon a la Pipe, he was living at the Beateau Lavoir in the Monmartre neighborhood of Paris. He took a break from painting, but came back to the work with fresh eyes. Picasso finished the painting by adding flowers and completing the details. Although Garcon à la Pipe is not considered a masterpiece by many critics, it consistently achieves a high price in auctions.
The estimated price for the work is USD 70 million. It is considered one of Picasso's early works from the Rose period, and is one of only a few that has remained in private hands. The current presale estimate is $70-million, which is significantly more than the previous record for the artist's other masterpiece, the Portrait of Doctor Gachet, which sold for USD 50 million. If Picasso's Garcon a la Pipe reaches this price, it will surpass the record set by van Gogh's Portrait of Doctor Gachet.
Gertrude Stein
Picasso's portrait of Gertrude Stein is one of his most popular works. Stein, who had become one of the most important patrons of the artist's career, posed for the artist approximately 80 to 90 times. The resulting painting of Stein was referred to as his “Rose Period” because of its warm earthy tone and the way she moved and posed in the painting.
Although Laurencin was grateful to Gertrude for the commission, he felt it was wrong to depict the past lives of artists and writers. According to James R. Mellow, Laurencin and Stein were no longer on good terms. However, they did appreciate one another's work and remained friends. It is interesting to note that Gertrude Stein was a major inspiration to many of Picasso's paintings.
Les Demoiselles d'Avignon
In terms of subject matter, Picasso's Les Demoiselles d ‘Avignon embodies the most sexualized period of European painting. Its subject matter combines sensuality and debauchery, and it belongs in the same decadent milieu as Klimt's ‘The Kiss'. Moreover, Picasso's painting foreshadows many of the developments in the cubist movement, as he flattens the figures' silhouettes and renders them in a space that goes nowhere. While the painting reveals a fascination with the sex life of his own day, it also echoes the debates over sexuality that have characterized the twentieth century.
Although Les Demoiselles d'Avillon evokes an era of high fashion and sensuality, it is arguably the most provocative piece by the artist. This work, by Picasso, reflects his obsession with the social unrest in 1906, which was a precursor to the modern era. Its provocative content is not surprising, given its subject matter. But some critics say Picasso's painting was a reaction to the work of Henri Matisse.
Girl Before a Mirror
This portrait painting, which depicts the 23-year-old Marie-Therese Walter, is considered one of the most iconic works of art of all time. The uterine image of Marie in the mirror releases her repressions as a woman. The half-hidden frontal view becomes a cosmetic mask that lures the viewer with its sexual lure. In this painting, the uterine image of the woman carries a deep emotional meaning for the woman, as the uterus represents fertility and sexual pleasure.
The artist's friend Therese was a major inspiration for the painting. She was the prime motivation for the artist and he studied her nature to create the painting. In this painting, the woman is depicted as fair with a pink complexion, yet the artist shows her dark and morbid side. This image reveals her feelings and thoughts. She is full of knowledge and yet she is also sad. The artist wanted her viewer to see that perception changes everything.
Guernica
Despite its massive scale, Picasso's Guernica remains surprisingly evocative. Its frenzied tangle of six people, a horse, a bull, and a tree depicts the horror and violence of war, and the resolute determination of a nation in turmoil. The painting is also noteworthy for its use of monochrome, a palette that helped Picasso create a photojournalistic realism. While the absence of colour contributes to the flattened Cubist forms, it also helps the artist to highlight key faces and add drama.
Although Picasso knew he was an original and his work would forever be polarizing, he was nonetheless able to stand up for Guernica and ensure that it remained in Spain until democracy was restored. It was returned to Spain in 1981, where it was displayed under bulletproof glass. The painting, which was then the subject of a museum exhibition, continued to provoke controversy and polarize opinion, and became the center of a rebirth and celebration of Spanish art and culture. It is one of the most famous paintings in the world.
The Weeping Woman
The Weeping Woman was completed in 1937 and is an oil on canvas. It depicts a woman who is sobbing, presumably over the loss of her son. The painting represents the anti-war message, but its colour scheme is also bleak. In the centre of the painting, the colours are filled with blues and greys, which threaten to take over the brighter ones. The Weeping Woman is slowly losing her light and is, in effect, experiencing horror.
Despite its iconic status, the Weeping Woman has undergone a number of revisions. In 1932, Picasso created several versions of this work. The latest one, which hangs at the Tate Museum, is the most complex and famous. It is believed to be the most complex of all the versions, but a week earlier, the National Gallery of Victoria acquired a different version. It's worth remembering that Picasso experimented with various mediums and styles, and his output was particularly prolific in the 1930s.
LE RÊVE
Le Reve shows the artist's 22-year-old mistress Marie-Therese Walter in an erotic reverie. The artist's muse's head and vagina are depicted in detail. Le Reve is a primal painting, with simple forms and vivid colours, creating dancing patterns and an erotically charged atmosphere. The painting is part of a series of portraits in which Picasso explored libido as he experimented with colour combinations and techniques.
