Buste de matador 1970

Pablo Picasso painted this image of a bullfighter, using oils, at an unknown date. Look at how Picasso layers strokes of blues and oranges to create the figure. The colours are bold and applied with visible brushstrokes, aren't they? It's like he's wrestling with the paint, trying to pin down an idea, but letting the process itself dictate the form. The texture here is really something. You can see the ridges and valleys of the paint, giving it a raw, almost sculptural quality. Then there’s that orange, almost like a flame, leaping off the canvas. It contrasts sharply with the cool blues, creating a tension that really vibrates. Notice how he reduces the matador's form to these simple shapes and lines, it's almost childlike, but also incredibly powerful. It reminds me of Guston in a way, that same willingness to embrace a kind of messy, awkward beauty. It’s like they're both saying, "Hey, art doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to be real."