Portrait of young girl 1914

This “Portrait of a Young Girl” was made by Pablo Picasso sometime around 1914. He used oil paint and other media to make it. The painting is all about layering, both of colours, mostly greens, and textures. Look closely at how the triangle of patterned fabric dominates the central space. It’s almost like a collage, but it’s all paint! I love how the patterns both define the form and dissolve it. It creates such a push and pull. That jagged line around the edge of the figure really grabs my attention. It reminds me that painting is always a kind of argument. We’re always trying to find new ways to represent what we see and feel. Picasso and Braque really changed the game with Cubism. It’s like they were in conversation with Cezanne, pushing his ideas about form and perspective to the absolute limit. Art is so much about seeing what’s been done and trying to do something new.