Pablo Picasso painted Don Quixote in 1955, and it is one of his more well-known paintings. Don Quixote features the characters Don Quixote de la Mancha and his sidekick, Sancho Panza, which are characters from the story by Miguel de Cervantes. The novel, Don Quixote, tells the tale of a man named Alonso Quijano, who reads so any heroic novels that he sets out to become one himself under the name Don Quixote. Alonso appoints a simple farmer, Sancho, to be his squire. The name, Don Quixote, means talented defender or gifted saviour.

Unlike his previous paintings, Picasso's Don Quixote seems like a simple black and white sketch. His previous paintings contained multiple color schemes and symbolism. However, Don Quixote seems to hold more power than the rest. The featured figures look deformed but dramatic. Picasso grasps the fatigue and weariness that the reader feels in Don Quixote. In addition, it seems that the figures in Don Quixote were changed many times before final completion. Don Quixote, on the right of the painting, has a thin neck that connects his head to his rather large body. Compared to Panza, who sits on the left, Don Quixote looks ragged and malnourished. Nonetheless, Picasso captures his audience's attention in Don Quixote with an overall attractiveness and a "bright humor."

A link for the novel, Don Quixote, is below if you would liked to read a summary of the story Picasso based this painting on.

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Don Quixote
Don Quixote - Novel
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  1. Pablo Picasso painted Don Quixote in 1955, and it is one of his more well-known paintings. Don Quixote features the characters Don Quixote de la Mancha and his sidekick, Sancho Panza, which are characters from the story by Miguel de Cervantes. The novel, Don Quixote, tells the tale of a man named Alonso Quijano, who reads so any heroic novels that he sets out to become one himself under the name Don Quixote. Alonso appoints a simple farmer, Sancho, to be his squire. The name, Don Quixote, means talented defender or gifted saviour.

    Unlike his previous paintings, Picasso's Don Quixote seems like a simple black and white sketch. His previous paintings contained multiple color schemes and symbolism. However, Don Quixote seems to hold more power than the rest. The featured figures look deformed but dramatic. Picasso grasps the fatigue and weariness that the reader feels in Don Quixote. In addition, it seems that the figures in Don Quixote were changed many times before final completion. Don Quixote, on the right of the painting, has a thin neck that connects his head to his rather large body. Compared to Panza, who sits on the left, Don Quixote looks ragged and malnourished. Nonetheless, Picasso captures his audience's attention in Don Quixote with an overall attractiveness and a "bright humor."

    A link for the novel, Don Quixote, is below if you would liked to read a summary of the story Picasso based this painting on.

    Source
    Don Quixote
    Don Quixote - Novel
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    1. The famous drawing was accidentally found several years ago. Art critics think that it's the original Don Quixote sketch which was painted by Picaso for a French magazine in 1955. It's written there. http://cubismsite.com/don-quixote-pablo-picasso/

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  2. Picasso painted his second self portrait while he was working on another piece, Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. Painted in 1907, Picasso created this piece after he decided to take a break from working on Les Demoiselles. Besides this self portrait, Picasso also did another self portrait in 1901during his Blue Period.

    The face of Picasso reflects the faces in Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. Having a three-dimensional sculpture quality, both the Demoiselles and Picasso faces seem something like a statue. According to rumour, earlier that year Picasso bought two simple Iberian head sculptures from the secretary of Apollinaire, a French poet. The sculptures were stolen from the Louvre in Paris, one of the largest museums in the world. Therefore, some believe that Picasso was inspired by the sculptured heads, and he chose to use that sculpture quality in his self portrait and in Les Demoiselles. (Pictured below: Les Demoiselles d'Avignon).

    Though Picasso was around 26 when he painted his self portrait, the way he depicts himself in the painting carries an air of adolescence. The vacant, almost empty eyes contrast the high level of energy that the painting gives. Picasso was particularly interested in the expressionless look, and he used it again in his painting, Profile of a Woman's Face, painted in 1960.

    Compared to his first self portrait in 1901, Picasso is much younger and happier with softer and more inviting facial features. In addition, the vivd colors surrounding him add an intense level of energy into his seemingly empty eyes. His 1901 self portrait gives a feeling of isolation and fear while his 1907 self portrait portrays more energy and aspiration. (A link to a picture of Picasso's self portrait in 1901 is below if you would like to compare the two images for yourself).

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    Self Portrait 1907
    Self Portrait 1901
    Les Demoiselles d'Avignon
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  3. The woman in Asleeep, painted in 1932, is again Marie Therese, Picasso's mistress. The two colors red and green are so bold and intense that they accentuate the tranquility of Marie Therese while sleeping. Like the women in Picasso's neoclassical period, Marie does not have any "expression or character" written on her face. Instead, her face is almost unpleasantly sizable and unchanging, which is how the women were portrayed during that period of Picasso's painting.

    The black lining around the woman is like the black binding of subjects during the Fauvism movement. To the right is a painting by Charles Camoin entitled La Petite Lina. The subject's purple clothing and hat are outlined with a subtle dark line, much like Marie.

    Notice Marie's hands. Her claw-like features give her an "animalistic primitivism," which is a belief in the simpleness and unsophistication of life. However, Picasso's delicate and elegant lyricism contrasts her unattractive quality. This theme of beauty and ugliness intrigued Picasso, and he depicted it in many of his other paintings.

    Source

    "Asleep"
    "La Petite Lima"
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  4. Pablo Picasso painted Girl Before A Mirror in March of 1932. Unlike The Old Guitarist, this painting is a part of Picasso's cubism period. The girl featured in the painting is Marie Therese Walter, who was a mistress of Picasso. She is featured in a number of Picasso's paintings. Seeing as that the subject of the painting is secret lover, some critics consider Girl Before a Mirror to be "erotic."

    Mirror is a bright and bold painting. Picasso included a background usually used to enhance the main focus on the image but decided to make just as important and eye-catching. The diamond pattern of the backdrop is similar to the costume of the Harlequin, a comical clown character featured in the Italian Commedia dell'arte, a form of theater in Italy during the 16th-century. Picasso often related himself to the character. (Pictured right: a modern day Harlequin)

    Besides so bold, the interpretations of Girl Before A Mirror are numerous. One interpretation is the brighter side of the painting represents the girl during the day when she appears more like a woman with all of her makeup on. However, the darker side represents the girl at night when she removes the mask of makeup thereby appearing like a young, vulnerable lady.


    Another interpretation is the darker side represents the girl in her old age. The green mark on her forehead and her darkened facial features shows the wrinkles and "distorted body" that comes with aging. Furthermore, some believe the girl sees all her flaws that others do not; she critiques herself while the world does not want her to change.

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    "Girl Before A Mirror"
    Harlequin


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  5. Picasso painted The Old Guitarist in 1903 following the suicide of his best friend, Casagemas. Because of his friend's death, Picasso became more sensitive and sympathetic towards the hardships of the ill-treated. He started to paint pictures portraying the sick, the miseries of being poor, and the ostracized. Seeing as he had been less fortunate the prior year, Picasso found that he had an easy time portraying his ideas and thoughts.

    The Old Guitarist  was a part of Picasso's Blue Period. However, the only non-blue object and difference in color in the painting is the guitar. The rest of the painting is composed of different shades of blue. Perhaps the guitar represents hope and dreams for the hopeless guitarist. When Picasso was painting Guitarist, the Symbolist movement was making its way through literature. Works created during this time included 'blind characters who possessed powers of inner vision."Therefore, Picasso may have drawn some inspiration from a well-written novel. Finally, the "thin, skeleton-like" old man is similar to the figures in the works of El Greco, a 16th-century artist. 

    A fun fact about the painting is there is an almost invisible woman behind the ear and neck of the old man. Some believe that Picasso started on another painting but decided to paint the Guitarist over it because of a low supply of materials.

    The original artwork is on display at the Art Institute of Chicago in the Helen Birch Bartlett Memorial Collection. 

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