Woman at a Fountain 1901

Picasso painted this image of Woman at a Fountain, likely with oil on canvas, sometime during his early career. It's interesting to see his approach to mark making here; loose, gestural, and confident, even as he seems to be searching for the figures in the painting. Look at how the paint is applied – in some areas, it's thin and transparent, allowing the underlayers to peek through, while in others, it's thicker, more opaque. The ochre ground shimmers through the figures. What strikes me most is the tension between the solidity of the figures and the more abstract rendering of the background. The child looks down, lost in thought, an island of calm, painted in a solid blue. It's a style reminiscent of Cezanne, who also embraced ambiguity, and the unresolved. What's really captivating is how Picasso lets us in on his process, showing us that art is not about perfection, but about exploration and the joy of discovery.