I SEE/I THINK/I WONDER
[GRADES 9–12 APPENDIX A]
NAME:
D AT E :
I SEE:
I THINK:
I WONDER:
PICASSO: MASTERPIECES FROM THE MUSÉE NATIONAL PICASSO, PARIS CURRICULUM GUIDE | de Young Fine Arts Museum
THE LIFE OF PICASSO
[GRADES 9–12 APPENDIX B]
Painting is just another way of keeping a diary. —Pablo Picasso
With an artistic career spanning eight decades, it is no surprise that Picasso has become one of the most
!"#$%"&!'()'"*)+%((,-".+")'/&!0&0).1)2!0)&!3%4)52!(%)6!7'00.80)'/&)9'/!%*)+!*%(:)!")0&:(%).9%/)&2%):%'/0;)!&)+'0)
always directly linked to the people, places, and current events in his life. Frequently his styles are broken
*.+")!"&.)*!0&!"7&)<%/!.*04)=%(.+):.$)+!(()>"*)')?/!%1)?!.@/'<2:).1)&2%)'/&!0&;)02.+!"@)A$0&)2.+)3$72)2!0)
environment and private life affected his artistic output. This rough outline highlights shifts in his artistic
style. Yet, as you will see in the exhibition, he never completely abandoned any mode of expression, using
many styles throughout his life.
!" Pablo Picasso was born October 25, 1881, in Malaga, Spain.
!" His father was an academic painter and an art professor in Barcelona.
!" Picasso studied at a young age to paint in the academic tradition of using great technical skill to mimic reality
BLUE PERIOD (1901–1904)
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S LIFE?
!" In 1900, at age 19, Picasso attended the World’s Fair in
Paris. He would move back and forth between Spain and
Paris until 1904, when he moved to Paris permanently.
!" !"#$%&'#$(#)*+,$)#-&&.$/#0-1$-23#)$3"#$4'*5*,#$+2$"*4$
close friend and fellow artist Carles Casagemas in 1901.
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S ART?
!" Picasso’s canvases lacked bright colors and had a palette
of mostly blues.
!" He depicted marginalized people and outcasts of
society, such as beggars and prostitutes.
!" Paintings had a very somber mood.
ROSE PERIOD (1904–1906)
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S LIFE?
!" Picasso spent a summer in Gósol, a Catalan village,
6"*5"$6-4$)#7#53#,$*1$4+8#$+2$3"#$-)3$+2$3"#$3*8#9$
A village dominated by red hues, this may be where
Picasso found inspiration for his palette.
!" Picasso lived up the street from the Medrano Circus,
which served as inspiration for his subject matter.
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S ART?
!" Picasso’s canvases used a palette of mostly pinks
and oranges.
!" Picasso painted street performers and other
marginalized people, such as circus entertainers,
acrobats, clowns, and harlequins
!" Picasso fell in love with Fernande Olivier in 1904. She
6-4$3"#$:)43$0)#-3$&+;#$+2$"*4$&*2#$-1,$4"#$+23#1$-<<#-)4$*1$
work created during their seven-year affair, which ended
in September 1911.
PICASSO: MASTERPIECES FROM THE MUSÉE NATIONAL PICASSO, PARIS CURRICULUM GUIDE | de Young Fine Arts Museum
THE LIFE OF PICASSO
[GRADES 9–12 APPENDIX B]
AFRICAN ART INFLUENCE/CUBIST PERIOD (1907–1915)
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S LIFE?
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S ART?
!" In 1907 Picasso visited the Ethographic Museum of the
!)+5-,=)+>$(-)*4>$6"#)#$"#$,*45+;#)#,$3"#$-)3$+2$?2)*5-$
-1,$@5#-1*-9$A#$*4$"#-;*&.$*17'#15#,$/.$6"-3$"#$4##49
!" Picasso began to incorporate African sculpture into his
-)3>$4<#5*:5-&&.$8-4B49$C-5#4$/#5-8#$7-33#)$-1,$2-5*-&$
features more geometric.
!" Picasso began to collect African art.
!" From 1907–1915, especially from 1909–1914, Picasso
worked closely with fellow artist Georges Braque to
5)#-3#$-$1#6$43.&#$5-&&#,$D'/*489$!"*4$43.&#$5"-&&#10#,$
traditional representations of objects in space.
!" From 1907–1915, especially from 1909–1914, Picasso
worked closely with fellow artist Braque to create
Cubism.
!" Braque and Picasso played off one another’s ideas, each
*17'#15*10$3"#$+3"#)$3+$3-B#$3"#$43.&#$3+$1#6$<&-5#49$
!" Picasso fell in love with Eva Gouel and planned to marry
her; however, she became ill and died in 1915. Picasso
incorporated her name into his Cubist works.
!" Cubism breaks objects down and reassembles them
from numerous points of view through space and time.
If you were to take a picture of something from different
viewpoints (top, bottom, side, etc.) and combine the
views into one image, it would be Cubist.
!" Picasso and Braque stopped signing their works at this
time because they liked the idea that their works were
indistinguishable.
!" !"#$-)3*434$-&4+$'4#,$1#6$8-3#)*-&4$*1$3"#*)$-)3$3+$5)#-3#$
collages and assemblages.
NEOCLASSICISM AND LIFE WITH OLGA (1917–1924)
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S LIFE?
!" In 1917, Picasso designed the set for a new ballet,
Parade. He fell in love with one of the ballerinas, Olga
Khokhlova, and married her the following year.
!" !+0#3"#)>$3"#.$8+;#,$*13+$-$1*5#$-<-)38#13$-1,$/#0*1$
to live a bourgeois, middle-class lifestyle, very different
from the life Picasso had been living before this. It was a
much more stable, conservative lifestyle for him.
!" In 1921, Olga and Picasso had their only child, Paulo
(Paul).
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S ART?
!" In 1917 Picasso designed the set for a new
ballet, Parade.
!" After marrying Olga Khokhlova, Picasso moves
to a much more conservative style than Cubism,
E#+5&-44*5*48>$*17'#15#,$/.$-)3*434$4'5"$-4$F10)#49$
!" Neoclassicism was a more traditional art style that
looked to classical Western art, such as that of the
ancient Greek and Romans.
!" Picasso began to incorporate both his son and wife into
his work.
PICASSO: MASTERPIECES FROM THE MUSÉE NATIONAL PICASSO, PARIS CURRICULUM GUIDE | de Young Fine Arts Museum
THE LIFE OF PICASSO
[GRADES 9–12 APPENDIX B]
SURREALISM AND MARIE-THÉRÈSE WALTER (1925–1935)
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S LIFE?
!" (*5-44+G4$8-))*-0#$/#0-1$3+$5)'8/&#9$A#$2#&3$,*44-3*4:#,$
with the lifestyle Olga desired, longing for the freer life he
once had.
!" Picasso’s friend the poet Guillaume Apollinaire died
in 1918, and Picasso created different designs for a
monument.
!" F1$HIJK$(*5-44+$8#3$L-)*#M!"=)N4#$O-&3#)$6"#1$4"#$
6-4$HK$-1,$"#$6-4$PQ9$!"#.$/#0-1$-$,#5-,#M&+10$-22-*)>$
which they kept hidden for many years due to her youth
and Picasso’s marriage.
!" F1$HIJR>$(*5-44+$4#5)#3&.$/)+'0"3$L-)*#M!"=)N4#$+1$"*4$
family vacation.
!" !"#.$5+'&,$1+$&+10#)$"*,#$3"#*)$)#&-3*+14"*<$6"#1$L-)*#M
!"=)N4#$/#5-8#$<)#01-13$6*3"$(*5-44+G4$4#5+1,$5"*&,>$
Maya, in 1935.
!" Picasso worked with Julio González, a wire sculptor, to
create sculptures that appear two-dimensional in threedimensional forms.
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S ART?
!" Picasso’s art took another stylistic shift that was heavily
*17'#15#,$/.$3"#$S'))#-&*4349$
!" Surrealists were interested in depicting dreams and the
subconscious mind.
!" L-)*#M!"=)N4#$+23#1$-<<#-)#,$*1$,*22#)#13$0'*4#4$*1$
Picasso’s art.
!" During the summer of 1928 Picasso created many
images of bathers and beach scenes.
!" A#$5)#-3#,$8-1.$*8-0#4$+2$L-)*#M!"=)N4#$O-&3#)$
reading or sleeping, always with her blonde hair.
!" (*5-44+$<-*13#,$L-)*#M!"=)N4#$6*3"$<-43#&$5+&+)4$-1,$
curved lines.
!" !"#$-)3*43$-3$"*4$#-4#&$/#5-8#$-$)#5'))*10$3"#8#9
!" F17'#15#,$/.$3"#$S'))#-&*434>$(*5-44+$/#0-1$3+$8-B#$
found-object sculptures with the help of Julio González.
THE WAR YEARS (1935–1945)
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S LIFE?
!" In 1935 Picasso was introduced to Surrealist artist Dora
L--)9$!"#.$/#0-1$-1$-22-*)9$T+)-$-1,$L-)*#M!"=)N4#$
quickly became aware of one another’s existence in
Picasso’s life.
!" Dora Maar was associated with a left wing political
<-)3.$-1,$6-4$;#).$<+&*3*5-&&.$*1;+&;#,9$!"*4$*17'#15#$
encouraged Picasso to become more politically
active himself.
!" On April 26, 1937, amid the Spanish Civil War (1936–
1939), the Basque village of Guernica was bombed.
!" Picasso was exiled from Spain during this time due to his
political condemnation of Francisco Franco, the dictator
of Spain.
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S ART?
!" Picasso depicted Dora Maar much differently than he
,*,$L-)*#M!"=)N4#9$L--)$*4$4"+61$6*3"$4"-)<$-10&#4>$
acidic colors, and red nails.
!" O*3"$3"#$/+8/*10$+2$U'#)1*5->$(*5-44+$5)#-3#,$"*4$:)43$
overtly political work, Guernica, for the 1937 World’s Fair
in Paris.
!" As a result of wartime, Picasso’s work became more
politically driven psychologically darker.
!" Picasso painted many “Weeping Women” who are
"#-;*&.$*17'#15#,$/.$T+)-$L--)9
!" World War II dominated European events from
1939–1945.
PICASSO: MASTERPIECES FROM THE MUSÉE NATIONAL PICASSO, PARIS CURRICULUM GUIDE | de Young Fine Arts Museum
THE LIFE OF PICASSO
[GRADES 9–12 APPENDIX B]
PICASSO’S FINAL YEARS (1943–1973)
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S LIFE?
!" Picasso met Françoise Gilot in 1943 and had two
children with her—Claude in 1947 and Paloma in 1949.
!" After World War II, Picasso lived in the South of France,
buying many homes, including La Californie, Cannes,
which appears in many of his paintings.
!" Françoise left Picasso in 1953.
!" Picasso met Jacqueline Roque in 1952, and the two
remained together until the end of the artist’s life.
!" V*2#&+10$2)*#1,$-1,$-)3*43*5$*17'#15#$-1,$)*;-&$A#1)*$
Matisse died in November 1954, affecting
Picasso greatly.
!" Picasso had not returned to Spain since 1930 and
perhaps longed for his homeland.
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN PICASSO’S ART?
!" !"#$/*)3"4$+2$(*5-44+G4$5"*&,)#1$-1,$"*4$1#6$)#&-3*+14"*<4$
with women brought a playfulness back to his art that
had been missing during the war years.
!" He introduced new characters to his work, such as
8'4B#3##)4>$-1,$6-4$*17'#15#,$/.$3"#$0)#-3$8-43#)4$
such as Rembrandt van Rijn, Francisco de Goya, and
Diego Velázquez.
!" Picasso painted variations of many works by great
8-43#)4$4'5"$-4$W#&XYZ'#Y>$[,+'-),$L-1#3>$-1,$\'0N1#$
Delacroix.
!" During his eighties, Picasso painted obsessively,
producing an astonishing quantity of works. He creates
hundreds of paintings, drawings, and etchings in his
last years.
!" Picasso died April 8, 1973 and is buried at the chateau of Vauvenarges.
PICASSO: MASTERPIECES FROM THE MUSÉE NATIONAL PICASSO, PARIS CURRICULUM GUIDE | de Young Fine Arts Museum
IMAGE FACT SHEETS
[GRADES 9–12 APPENDIX C]
Woman with Clasped Hands
[Study for “Les demoiselles d’Avignon”]
Paris, spring 1907
Oil on canvas
FACTS:
!" Completed in Paris in spring 1907, this painting is oil
on canvas.
!" Picasso painted this as a study for a largerscale painting.
!" Although entitled Woman with Clasped Hands, this
painting can be understood as a self-portrait of
Picasso: the sweep of hair and the blocked out eye
are typically used by the artist in his self-portraits. See
*2$.+'$5-1$:1,$-1.$+3"#)$#]-8<&#4$+2$3"*4$+1$.+')$;*4*3$
to the de Young.
@5#-1*->$-$3)*<$3"-3$*17'#15#,$(*5-44+$0)#-3&.9
!" Picasso began to collect African art and use the
appearance of African masks in his art, seen here in
3"#$2-5*-&$2#-3')#4$-1,$3"#$7-33#1*10$+2$3"#$2-5#9$
!" In 1907, Picasso also attended a retrospective of
-)3*43$(-'&$D=Y-11#>$6"*5"$#15+')-0#,$"*8$3+$#]<&+)#$
sculptural form in two dimensions—for example, in the
breaking of the line of the arm in this self-portrait.
!" One of the two eyes is blocked out as if it were
sightless. Picasso had lifelong fascination with
/&*1,1#44$-1,$4*0"39$S##$*2$.+'$5-1$:1,$-1.$+3"#)$
examples of this on your visit to the de Young.
!" !"*4$6+)B$)#5-&&4$F/#)*-1$45'&<3')#>$6"*5"$"-4$U)##B$
-1,$\0.<3*-1$*17'#15#49$!"*4$5-1$/#$4##1$*1$3"#$
:0')#G4$/)+-,$5"#43$-1,$4"+'&,#)4>$-4$6#&&$-4$3"#$6-.$
musculature is depicted.
!" In 1907, Picasso visited Paris’s Ethnographic Museum
+2$3"#$!)+5-,=)+>$6"*5"$*15&',#,$-)3$+2$?2)*5-$-1,$
Guitar and Bottle of Bass
Paris, summer–autumn 1913
(-)3*-&&.$<-*13#,$<*1#>$<-<*#)$5+&&=>$
charcoal, and nails on wood panel
FACTS:
!" Picasso used a wide array of materials, but primarily
used wood to create different effects, textures, and
spatial relationships
!" !"*4$6+)B$-1,$+3"#)4$&*B#$*3$5"-&&#10#,$3)-,*3*+1-&$
conceptions of painting and sculpture by intertwining
the two.
!" !"*4$-)36+)B$6-4$5+8<&#3#,$*1$(-)*4$*1$HIH^9$F3$*4$
made of partially painted pine components, glued
paper, charcoal, and nails on a wooden backing.
!" @3"#)$-)3*434$-3$3"*4$3*8#$6#)#$,#<*53*10$5-2=$&*2#$*1$
(-)*49$!"#$/+33&#$+2$%-44$-1,$4'00#43*+1$+2$8'4*5$*1$
3"*4$<*#5#$4"+6$"+6$+3"#)$-)3$*17'#15#,$(*5-44+9
!" At this time Picasso was working closely with Georges
Braque to create Cubism, an art form that challenged
the representation of objects in space by breaking
them down and reassembling them. Braque and
(*5-44+$0)#-3&.$*17'#15#,$#-5"$+3"#)$3+$/)*10$3"#$
style to new places.
!" !"#$0'*3-)$43*&&$&*2#$*1$-$5-2=$*4$-$5&-44*5$D'/*43$4'/_#53>$
which Picasso often used at this time.
!" Braque began creating “construction sculptures” in
HIHH>$*17'#15*10$(*5-44+$3+$/#0*1$8-B*10$"*4$+61$
assemblages. An assemblage is a three-dimensional
sculpture made from found objects. Picasso’s
assemblages in turn took Braque’s paper versions to
the next level.
!" For Picasso and others, the guitar and mandolin are
associated with the female form.
!" !"#$4'<<+)3$/+-),$+1$3"#$/-5B$*4$-$5-2=$3-/&#3+<$3*&3#,$
upwards. In the middle is the guitar with its vertical
neck; to the right a clarinet with sound holes; and
at the left center is the round bottle of Bass beer.
Picasso frequently played with the idea of space. See
*2$.+'$5-1$:1,$+3"#)$#]-8<&#4$+2$3"*4$+1$.+')$3)*<$3+$
the de Young.
PICASSO: MASTERPIECES FROM THE MUSÉE NATIONAL PICASSO, PARIS CURRICULUM GUIDE | de Young Fine Arts Museum
IMAGE FACT SHEETS
[GRADES 9–12 APPENDIX C]
Paul as a Harlequin
Paris, 1924
Oil on canvas
!" Harlequin is a romantic, but also a trickster, who steals
the love of a woman.
!" Harlequin serves as an alter ego for Picasso.
FACTS:
!" Completed in Paris in 1924, this is an image of
(*5-44+G4$4+1$(-'&$6*3"$:)43$6*2#>$@&0-9$!"#$<-*13*10$*4$
oil on canvas.
!" When Picasso and Olga wed, he was reaching a level
of success where he could afford nice things and
when Olga desired a bourgeois lifestyle, which he
could now provide. Picasso’s painting style shifted
to Neoclassicism during this time, a style more
)#-&*43*5$-1,$5+14#);-3*;#$3"-1$"*4$<)#;*+'4$6+)B9$!"*4$
<)+0)#44*+1$8-.$)#7#53$"*4$1#6>$8+)#$5+143)-*1#,$
relationship with Olga.
!" Picasso paints his son as Harlequin, his alter ego,
&++B*10$Z'*3#$8#&-15"+&.9$!"*4$8-.$)#7#53$3"#$
unhappiness and trapped feelings the artist was
experiencing in his marriage to Olga.
!" !"*4$<-*13*10$5-1$/#$4##1$-4$-$,+'/&#$*&&'4*+19$
!")+'0"+'3$"*4$6+)B>$(*5-44+$,#<*534$"*84#&2$-4$
Harlequin; in this work the identity is placed on his
son. Picasso is very interested in the idea of morphing
*,#13*3*#49$S##$*2$.+'$5-1$:1,$+3"#)$#]-8<&#4$+2$3"*4$
on your trip to the de Young.
!" While Picasso was married to Olga, he longed for the
freer, bohemian lifestyle he once had.
!" Paul was three at the time of this painting.
!" Picasso paints Paul in the costume of Harlequin, a
stock character from an Italian form of theater then
popular in France.
Large Still Life on a Pedestal Table
Paris, March 11, 1931
Oil on canvas
!" !"#$.#&&+6$<*35"#)$5-1$/#$4##1$-4$"#)$/&+1,#$"-*)>$
while other objects represent her various physical
attributes.
!" Picasso himself may also be represented in this work.
FACTS:
!" !"*4$<-*13*10$6-4$5+8<&#3#,$L-)5"$HH>$HI^H>$*1$(-)*49$
It is oil on canvas.
!" Objectively, the painting is a still life with a pitcher and
dish of fruit arranged on a pedestal table.
!" (*5-44+$8#3$3"#$/&+1,#$L-)*#M!"=)N4#$O-&3#)$6"#1$
she was 17 and he was 45.
!" O"#1$3"#.$8#3>$(*5-44+$6-4$43*&&$8-))*#,$3+$:)43$
6*2#>$@&0->$4+$L-)*#M!"=)N4#$-1,$(*5-44+$B#<3$3"#*)$
relationship a secret until 1935, when she became
pregnant with Picasso’s second child, Maya.
!" Because of the secret nature of their affair, Picasso
6+'&,$+23#1$"*,#$L-)*#M!"=)N4#$*1$"*4$-)3>$4'5"$-4$
with this still life.
!" Picasso often used bright colors and curvy lines to
,#<*53$L-)*#M!"=)N4#9
!" Picasso was very familiar with the French Academy
of Painting and Sculpture, the traditional “academy”
that established a hierarchy of painting genres for
purposes of awarding prizes and scholarships. In
this hierarchy, still life was at the bottom, with history
painting at the top (followed by portraits, genre
painting, and landscapes).
!" Picasso was fascinated by the idea of creating
transformation and metamorphosis, here changing
*1-1*8-3#$+/_#534$*13+$"'8-1$:0')#49$S##$*2$.+'$5-1$
:1,$+3"#)$#]-8<&#4$+2$3"*4$+1$.+')$3)*<$3+$3"#$$ $
de Young.
PICASSO: MASTERPIECES FROM THE MUSÉE NATIONAL PICASSO, PARIS CURRICULUM GUIDE | de Young Fine Arts Museum
IMAGE FACT SHEETS
[GRADES 9–12 APPENDIX C]
!"##$%&'()*+,'&)-.)'&+)!"##$%&'+/
Boisgeloup, September 19, 1933
Oil on wood
FACTS:
!" !"*4$<-*13*10$6-4$5+8<&#3#,$S#<3#8/#)$HI>$HI^^>$*1$
Boisgeloup, France.
!" (*5-44+$/#0-1$'4*10$/'&&:0"3$45#1#4$*1$3"#$HI^`49$
!" %'&&:0"3*10$6-4$3"#$1-3*+1-&$4<+)3$+2$S<-*1>$$
Picasso’s homeland.
$
!" He was a lifelong fan of the sport.
!" Picasso frequently depicted himself as the bull or as
the mythical Minotaur, who was half-man, half-beast.
S##$*2$.+'$5-1$:1,$+3"#)$#]-8<&#4$+2$(*5-44+$'4*10$
animals as symbols on your visit to the de Young
!" !"#$"+)4#$-1,$/'&&$-<<#-)$*1$(*5-44+G4$&-)0#M45-&#$
political work Guernica (1937) to symbolize a ravaged
Spain amid the Spanish Civil War.
!" %'&&:0"3*10$*1;+&;#,$-$/'&&>$-$8-3-,+)>$-1,$"*4$"+)4#$*1$
a life and death battle.
0-/'/,1')-.)*-/,)2,,/
Paris, 1937
Oil on canvas
FACTS:
!" !"*4$<+)3)-*3$6-4$5+8<&#3#,$*1$(-)*4$*1$HI^K$-1,$*4$
painted in oil on canvas.
!" !"*4$*4$-$<+)3)-*3$+2$T+)-$L--)>$+1#$+2$(*5-44+G4$
mistresses. She was an established Surrealist artist
and was very politically active. Friends described her
as having a very emotional and intense personality.
She was tall with dark hair and drastically different
3"-1$3"#$/&+1,#$-1,$)#&-3*;#&.$<-44*;#$L-)*#M!"=)N4#$
Walter, his other mistress at the time.
!" !"#$<+#3$(-'&$[&'-),$*13)+,'5#,$(*5-44+$3+$T+)-$
Maar in 1935. Legend has it that Picasso saw Dora at
3"#$5-2=$V#4$T#']$L-0+34$*1$(-)*49$O"*&#$"#$6-35"#,$
her, she took her pocketknife out and began quickly
43-//*10$3"#$3-/&#$*1$/#36##1$#-5"$+2$"#)$:10#)49$
She then gave Picasso her blood-soaked glove to
remember her by. It is often thought that this is why
(*5-44+$2)#Z'#13&.$<-*134$T+)-$6*3"$)#,$:10#)1-*&49$
!" Picasso would depict Dora with sharp, angular forms
'4*10$-5*,*5$.#&&+64$-1,$0)##149$!"*4$43.&#$,*22#)4$2)+8$
the soft, curved lines and bright colors of his paintings
+2$L-)*#M!"=)N4#9$
!" Dora was a photographer and took many pictures of
Picasso working in his studio.
!" Picasso used Dora as a source of inspiration for his
“Weeping Women,” most famously depicted in his
large-scale political work Guernica (1937).
!" (*5-44+$6+'&,$<-*13$T+)-G4$2-5#$*1$<)+:&#$a2)+8$3"#$
side) and from the front (as if she was looking directly
out at the viewer) simultaneously creating a unique
)#<)#4#13-3*+1$+2$3"#$"'8-1$2-5#9$S##$*2$.+'$5-1$:1,$
other examples of this “double face” on your trip to
the de Young.
PICASSO: MASTERPIECES FROM THE MUSÉE NATIONAL PICASSO, PARIS CURRICULUM GUIDE | de Young Fine Arts Museum
IMAGE FACT SHEETS
[GRADES 9–12 APPENDIX C]
The Studio of La Californie
Cannes, March 30, 1956
Oil on canvas
FACTS:
!" !"*4$<-*13*10$6-4$5+8<&#3#,$L-)5"$^`>$HIQb>$*1$
Cannes, France. It is oil on canvas.
!" In 1955, Picasso purchased the 19th-century villa La
Californie, overlooking Cannes.
!" He decorated his studio at the villa with art nouveau
decor and set it up overlooking the garden. He
produced a series of drawings and paintings of this
studio space.
!" As Picasso grew older he became more isolated from
contemporary art and artists, becoming not only selfreferential but referential to the great masters in art
history, such as the Spanish painter Diego Velázquez.
!" !"*4$<-*13*10$4"+64$3"#$43',*+$6*3"$3"#$0-),#1$3+$3"#$
right. In the right foreground there are two painted
5-1;-4#49$!"#$*8-0#$-&4+$4"+64$3"#$*13#)*+)$43)'53')#$
and decor of La Californie.
!" Picasso was very interested in depicting the artist and
his model, as well as the artist and his studio. See if
.+'$5-1$:1,$+3"#)$#]-8<&#4$+2$(*5-44+$'4*10$3"#4#$
themes on your trip to the de Young.
!" !"#$*8-0#$)#5-&&4$L-3*44#G4$Red Studio (1911).
Matisse and Picasso were longtime friends and had
*17'#15#,$#-5"$+3"#)$+;#)$3"#$.#-)49$!"#$36+$"-,$-1$
interesting relationship; they created much of their
work at the same time, yet Matisse was older than
Picasso. Matisse had died the year before this Picasso
painted this work, which can be seen as an homage
to him.
(Matisse’s Red Studio can be seen online at :
http://www.moma.org/collection/object.php?object_id=78389)
PICASSO: MASTERPIECES FROM THE MUSÉE NATIONAL PICASSO, PARIS CURRICULUM GUIDE | de Young Fine Arts Museum