Friendship 1908

Pablo Picasso made 'Friendship' with oils on canvas, and it's now here in the Hermitage Museum. The colours are really dialled down, with greens and browns dominating, which he then offsets against some sharp blues. Picasso’s application of paint is expressive and direct. The brushstrokes are clearly visible, especially if you look at the way he renders the faces. There is a thickness to the paint, and the texture adds a tactile quality to the work, inviting a haptic exploration even though you can’t actually touch it. Look at the angularity of the forms, how he builds the figures out of simple geometric shapes. The figures are interlocking, as if they are holding each other up. For me, it's about how Picasso embraces ambiguity, letting multiple interpretations coexist. Like how we all work through ideas over time, constantly revising and rethinking.