A hat with flowers 1940

This portrait by Picasso, painted with oils, has a subdued palette and bold lines, all dancing together. I can almost feel Picasso in his studio, wrestling with the canvas, trying to pin down a feeling, an idea. Look how he’s flattened the face, broke it into these geometric shapes. What was he thinking? Was it a comment on beauty, on how we see each other, or how we fall apart in relationships? The heavy hat, casting shadows, reminds me of a shield. Maybe it is like how artists use colour and form to construct emotion, protect themselves. Those tear-like shapes are odd, I feel Picasso. The way he handled the paint— not too thick, but each brushstroke is deliberate, it feels like a game of hide and seek. I see Matisse and Cezanne in there. They, like Picasso, are all building on each other. That’s the magic of painting—it is like an ongoing conversation. It never ends.