Variation on Delacroix's "Women of Algiers": V 1955

Picasso made this etching, one of a series, as a ‘Variation on Delacroix's "Women of Algiers,"' using simple lines. You can see how he really embraced the process of artmaking. It's like he's having a conversation with Delacroix, responding through mark-making. I love how physical it feels. The texture seems almost tactile, doesn't it? Look closely and you can see these fine lines, like he's scratching into the surface. Notice the way the figures are rendered, almost as if they’re made of wire. The energy of each line is so apparent, you can feel the artist’s hand moving across the plate. The marks build up to create form, shadow, depth. It's fascinating to consider how Picasso’s response to Delacroix echoes back to Manet, and forward to artists like Elizabeth Murray who used the canon to challenge painting’s conventions. Art isn't just about answers, but about all the interesting questions, and interpretations, we can ask along the way.