Modern Art & Design presents

Pablo Picasso, ”Homme barbu de trois-quart/Version profil d’un homme”

The human body and portraits were recurring favourite subjects throughout Picasso's career. Even his earliest works show an exceptional ability to capture the character and mood of the model. From 1900 onwards, he drew and painted numerous portraits in various artistic styles: symbolism, cubism, neoclassicism, surrealism and expressionism. Although he allowed himself complete creative freedom, Picasso was traditional in that he almost always painted and drew in front of a model.

Although Picasso paved the way for a completely new direction in art at the beginning of the 20th century, he never abandoned earlier art history. Still, he drew repeated inspiration from groundbreaking masterpieces that influenced him in various ways to challenge his own artistic creation.

In ”Homme barbu de trois-quart/Version profil d’un homme”, the portrayed man looks past us, absorbed in his thoughts in a quiet, almost devotional way. The brushwork is quick and intense. Picasso exploited the full register of ink painting from intense blackness to bright, only hinting at shadows, broad brushstrokes, and thin, almost carved strokes.