Pablo Picasso’s painting Les Demoiselles d’Avignon is one of the most significant paintings of the 20 th century. The painting was created in 1907. The title of the painting implies the young women of Avignon. This particular painting is remarkable as it symbolizes the start of modern art. It generally involved a final assault on the past, more specifically on the traditional view of pictorial space along with representational painting (Harris, 2008) . Picasso, in this painting, ignored the pre-existing conventions of art such as perspective as well as naturalism, henceforth, preparing viewers into a new future that they were not ready for.
In less Demoiselles d’Avignon, content together with form is equally equalized, thus, further enhancing its attractive features. The painting’s title refers to Barcelona’s Avignon Street. This was the home of the prostitutes that Picasso frequently visited. According to Moma Learning (n.d.) , the pinkish-peach-colored bodies of the five women adequately fill the painting’s space. An interesting factor to note is that the painting’s scope is about eight feet high and seven feet wide. The faces of the women in the picture are radically simplified and sharp-edged, more specifically those of the two women on the right side of the art. Picasso modeled these two women directly after the masks of Africans. Also, cubic shapes or half circles form the women’s breasts. In addition, their limbs, hips, as well as shoulders, are portrayed with flat geometric planes as well as angular lines. It is imperative to note that the woman on the left of the painting demonstrates Egyptian art. Following Picasso’s desire for extreme simplification, the colors utilized in the picture have been particularly minimized to two, all variants of blue as well as ochre (Moma Learning, n.d.) . The painting was a direct consequence of a long conception time. It is during this time that Picasso created about 806 sketches for preparatory purposes. The painting is a progressive and slow explanation process that left nothing to chance even though it symbolizes some areas that appear unfinished. What makes this painting particularly noteworthy is the crossing of traditional female nude painting with a brothel theme.
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Also, the painting is created with tempera paint utilizing a neutral pallet along with a flat style. Collage papes are additionally created by creating textures and combining colors by using sponges. Once the shapes are firmly in place, oil pastels are employed to improve the overall design and establish patterns as well. Picasso attempts to utilize very dark colors together with textures in his painting, which, in turn, makes this piece different and unique at the same time. Darker colors are also used on the painting’s left side whereas warmer colors are seen on the right.
Markedly, the painting is a form of cubism painting. Cubism is an art movement that modernized European sculpture and painting in the 20 th century. In cubism, the painter breaks subjects into many aspects so that numerous features of the subject can be viewed at the same time. Thus, it becomes useful when attempting to express the world’s depth and complexity in a simplified way. This painting can be classified under cubism since it tries to achieve a formal synthesis through the intersection of various planes so that the subjects can be viewed effortlessly.
This artwork makes me feel proud and contented whenever I look at it. This is because it shows that Picasso was indeed influenced by African art. More so, there is the omission of perspective in the painting. As such, there is no vanishing point. In other words, the eyes of the viewers cannot move beyond the women as well as their pointed glances.
To sum up, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon is one of the most phenomenal paintings of the 20 th century. The content, style, and color of the art enhance its design to make it a masterpiece.
References
Harris, J. (2008). Picasso's Les Demoiselles d’Avignon. Archives of General Psychiatry , 65 (6), 620. Doi: 10.1001/archpsyc.65.6.620
Moma Learning. MoMA | Pablo Picasso. Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. Paris, June–July 1907. Retrieved from https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/pablo-picasso-les-demoiselles-davignon-paris-june-july-1907/
