VTS Recap: Family of Saltimbanques by Pablo Picasso
Family of Saltimbanques by Pablo Picasso (1905), National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., USA
Last week we had 2 intriguing VTS (Visual Thinking Strategies) discussions about this Picasso piece from his lesser-known (but critically acclaimed) Rose Period.
Who is Pablo Picasso?
Picture of Pablo Picasso, 1908, Wikipedia
Born Pablo Ruiz Picasso, 1881, Málaga, Andalusia
From a middle-class family
Father was a painter, art professor, and museum curator
His first words were “piz, piz,” which is short for lapiz (Spanish for pencil)
Prolific artist for 80 of his 91 years (died in France, 1973)
Without Picasso, the development of modern art in the 20th century wouldn’t have happened or would have looked much different. He’s most famous for inventing cubism with artist Georges Braque around 1907, but he had many other, influential works throughout his life.
Picasso’s work is often divided into periods, starting with the Blue period. Before the Blue Period, around 1900, he was the definition of a starving artist who often had to burn his own works to keep himself and his roommate warm in their small Paris apartment.
Blue Period, 1901-1904
Rose Period, 1904-1906
African-Influenced Period, 1907–1909
Analytic Cubism Period, 1909–1912
Synthetic Cubism Period, 1912–1919
Neoclassical Period, late 1910s–early 1920s
Surrealist Period, mid-1920s
World War II, 1939-1949
Later works, 1949-1973 (death)
What I find amazing is that each of these relatively short periods is significantly different from the last. While we may look back and see an evolution from one to the next, all culminating in his later periods, Picasso did not see it this way. He believed that the style of work had to fit the subject matter and since his subject matter changed significantly, so did his style.
Family of Saltimbanques is from Picasso’s Rose Period. But, let’s touch on his Blue Period first.
Blue Period, 1901–1904
The Blue Period is characterized by somber paintings predominantly in cool shades of blue and blue-green. His works often featured sad, malnourished, poor people, including mothers with children, prostitutes, and beggars.
This period was influenced by a trip through Spain where he saw a lot of poverty and suffering and the suicide of his friend, Spanish painter and poet, Carles Casagemas.
Rose Period, 1904–1906
The Rose Period looks similar in the way it’s painted (at least more similar than some of his other periods). But, it is quite different in tone and subject matter from the Blue Period. His work during this time is typically lighter in tone, uses warm colors like pink and orange, and often features circus people, acrobats, and harlequins (people called saltimbanques in France). In fact, the harlequin became a personal symbol for Picasso.
Other significant differences in the Rose Period hold importance, especially to art historians. During this time, he started to abstract his subject matter more and started to use a more expressionist line. These both laid the groundwork for his signature style and later, highly abstracted pieces.
Why was the Rose Period so different from the Blue Period? It’s often attributed to a difference in Picasso’s own state of mind and happiness. He was in a loving relationship with model and bohemian artist, Fernande Olivier, (who also featured in many of his works) and his career and economic situation were improving. It was during this time that he became a favorite of art collectors Gertrude Stein (American novelist, poet, playwright, and art collector) and her husband, Leo.
Family of Saltimbanques
This painting fits nicely into his other Rose Period pieces and shows the connection he felt with circus performers, even painting himself as the harlequin figure. Many saltimbanques were a lot like him—from Spain, living a tough, transitory lifestyle similar to what he experienced as a young man, and finding themselves ostracized from “proper society.”
This painting’s figures appear isolated, lost in their own thoughts, and within a harsh and barren landscape—all comments on their place in the world at the time.
The dreamy atmosphere lends an almost ghostly or otherworldly feeling to this piece, which may have been a further comment on the subject matter, though many art historians attribute this to his regular use of opium, a common drug used by artists during this time.
Why I particularly love Picasso
Picasso was a rebel who loved art and saw it as more than a calling to make beautiful things, but a calling to express the truth of the world and to push creativity itself.
He wasn’t afraid to be different, to be rejected, or even to be in danger for his art. While living in Paris during the Nazi occupation of World War II, artists were not supposed to be creating any artwork that was deemed unacceptable by strict Nazi rules, and it was illegal to cast sculptures in bronze since all metal was supposed to help power the Nazi war machine. Picasso secretly continued to do both.
The Gestapo (German secret police) was known to frequent his house to check on whether he was behaving or not and in one famous encounter, they asked him if he had created La Guernica. He replied, “No, you did.”
La Guernica by Pablo Picasso, 1937, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid, Spain
La Guernica is a remarkable painting that Picasso did in 1937 (during his Surrealist Period). It is a commentary on the bombing by Nazi German forces of the village of Guernica in northern Spain. The painting is remarkable as a political statement, in the emotions it evokes, and also in its size (11.5ft x 25.5ft). The bombing of Guernica was a shock to the world, especially to Spaniards like Picasso. Not only was this the first aerial saturation bombing of a civilian population in history, but it also held no strategic military value to the Germans. Picasso’s painting shines a bright spotlight on the senseless, inhuman violence that pervaded World War II. And, the guts he had to say what he said about it to the Gestapo nicely sums up the type of artist and man he was.
In Picasso’s words
Picasso was not only a prolific and influential artist, but also a writer and philosopher who has countless inspiring quotes. Some favorites:
“Everything you can imagine is real.”
“Art is the lie that enables us to realize the truth.”
“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.”
“Others have seen what is and asked why. I have seen what could be and asked why not. ”
“Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.”
What were some things that were noticed during the VTS discussions?
“The people on the left are a group of circus performers who are traveling through a desert, while the two figures on the right are opera singers or actors who get more attention and who belong somewhere where people travel to see them”
Evidence: the costumes of the people seem to be similar to what you’d see at a circus or carnival, the man in red looks like he may be wearing a ruffle around his neck like a joker you might see in a deck of cards, the background seems barren like a desert and there are shadows that make it seem like there may be sand dunes, the boy and woman on the right are in brighter, cleaner clothing and have a stronger light on them to indicate that they get more attention or are performers who are considered higher class than the performers on the right whose clothing is not only dirty and torn, but they themselves are painted in muted colors and seem to have a shroud over them
“The fat man in red is a devilish figure who owns the children as slaves and the man on the far right holding the little girl’s hand is negotiating to buy the girl, the woman sitting down on the right is perhaps the wife of the man trying to buy the girl and the small boy on the right of the group is looking longingly at the woman wishing that he could be adopted”
Evidence: the boy in the center is almost naked and has no shoes, plus he is carrying a heavy load that indicates he may be a slave, the man in red has the colors of the devil, and there is what may be blood on the collar that’s around his neck, the two boys are looking longingly at the woman who is seated because they wish they could escape this life and live with a family like the little girl is about to, the two men seem to be having a tense conversation as they are looking at each other and have stern expressions
“It’s winter time, maybe Christmas time, but it’s confusing that the young boy in the middle seems almost naked as if dressed for a day at the beach”
Evidence: most of the people in this painting are wearing clothing that looks warm like it is winter time and their clothing is decorative and festive, the man in red looks like he could be Santa with his large sack behind his shoulder, and the young boy in the center looks naked except for the dark undergarment as if he is at the beach, but this is confusing since it’s so different from the others
“These people are stopping to rest by the bank of a river”
Evidence: They look like they are traveling on a journey and the woman is sitting to rest as you may by the bank of a river; while many may think that river banks have a lot of trees and other green vegetation, in India, many river banks look like this and are barer
“The little girl looks like she’s possibly a flower girl, but it’s more dramatic than what I would expect to see at a typical wedding”
Evidence: the little girl’s dress is fancy and meant for a special occasion; the basket that she has her hand on has flowers and leaves in it and winding up the handle; however, I would expect a flower girl’s basket to be smaller either with no handle or just a small handle and to be filled with brighter flowers, this basket, and its handle is so big that they make up almost half of her height, which seems unusual and dramatic
“The boy in the center is possibly wearing a leotard and is an acrobat”
Evidence: while he could be naked except for the dark undergarment, I see a line at his neck, and that below it, the color is slightly different than the skin on his face and neck; I have seen acrobats that look just like this with a light, flesh-colored leotard, and dark shorts
“The seated woman is distraught and is begging for money”
Evidence: she looks like she is seated and you can see what looks like the bend of her legs under her skirt; she has a vase next to her that appears empty, and she appears to be holding something; she looks upset because of her eyes, and that she is looking down and away, she seems like she needs help and that the young boys are both looking at her wondering if they should help her
“The seated woman is upset because her daughter is being sold to the man in red and the little girl is looking down out of sadness as well”
Evidence: all of the children seem to be looking elsewhere and appear to be close to and possibly controlled by the man in red, the little girl, the man holding her hand, and the woman seem like a family, and it appears that the two men are negotiating how much the little girl will be sold for
“The group is tired or weary from a long journey and are all looking for comfort, support, and guidance; the little girl is resting her head on the man in red’s big belly because she is tired”
Evidence: the little girl is missing a shoe (perhaps she lost it on the road), all of their clothing looks dirty and worn as it would if you were walking and sleeping in the elements, and there is a dark shadow around the girl’s head that makes it look like she is pushing the
red man’s big belly in with her head
What do you see in this painting?
