The Works of Picasso - Periods

Blue Period (1901-1904)

The Blue Period of Picasso receives this name because the artist used mainly blue and blue-green tones on all his paintings. The paintings were almost monochromatic.

During this period, he was probably influenced by a trip to Spain, and mainly by the suicide of his friend Carlos Casagemas. Pablo made several works about him and this event, which affected his life.

You may or may not like the works´ expressions of this period, but the works are there, reflecting perhaps what Pablo lived during those years. These works clearly show signs of unhappiness, isolation and poverty.

Pink Period (1904-1906)

It is also known as Rose Period. In 1904, Pablo met Fernande Olivier, a known model among artists, who was the his mistress for several years. She influenced him in this period. They used to visit a circus which was near his studio.

Pablo begun with the use of more vivid colors, like pink, yellow and orange. He depicted acrobats and harlequins in checkered pattern clothing, so giving more life to his paintings.

It is clearly appreciated that during this period Pablo was in a good mood. This was the beginning of a prosperous period for Pablo.

African Period (1908-1909)

Sometimes, this period has also been called as Negro Period. At that time, France had some colonies in Africa, and a lot of African artifacts were brought to the museums of Paris.

This is the base of the African influence in Pablo, which can be clearly seen on his painting "Les Demoiselles d´Avignon". Though in this painting a clear sign of Cubism can be appreciated. In fact, this painting is considered as the first Cubist work of the Artist.

Analytic Cubism (1909-1912)

This painting style was developed by Pablo along with the French painter and sculptor, Georges Braque. The Analytic Cubism style is composed of neutral colors and brownish shades.

Picasso and Braque used to "analyze" the shape of diverse objects. In fact, the paintings of both artists are very similar. It is indeed a very interesting experience to appreciate these paintings and let your imagination flow...

Synthetic Cubism (1912-1919)

This style was a further development of the Analytic Cubism. It is also known as Collage Cubism. Because of the limitation of the Analytic Cubism, Pablo decided to make some changes in style.

He added pieces or fragments of newspapers pages, which were cut and pasted into his paintings. This was the first time a collage was used in fine art.

Classicism and Surrealism (1919-1936, between World War I and Spanish Civil War)

During this period, Picasso returned to a more traditional style, known as Classicism. But he did not keep this style all the time during the neoclassic period.

In spite of this style change, Pablo returned to Cubism from time to time. There are several paintings revealing it.

But the most important example of Surrealism is "Guernica", the large canvas depicting the German bombing of the town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War.

War Time (1937-1945, during World War II)

At that time, Pablo was living in Paris, which was occupied by the Nazis and under their control. Apparently, they did not like the style of Picasso, but because of uncertain reasons, he was not bothered by them.

Pablo was not able to show his works during that time, but he developed some works in bronze, though its use was restricted by the Nazis.

A good example from this period, that reflects the horrors of the war and that of the concentration camps, is his painting "The Charnel House".

Later Works (1946-1973, after World War II)

As it was to be expected from him, Pablo changed his style again in this period, by reinterpreting the works of some great artists.

Pablo produced several works based on "Las Meninas", the painting of Velazquez. Other works are based on paintings of Goya, Delacroix and other masters. It seems that his inspiration was not giving the best during this time.

He also produced a number of sculptures, not only for his villa´s garden, but also for some important cities. An example of this, is the huge sculpture, fifteen meters high, that he made for the city of Chicago.

The last years until his death, Picasso was very productive. He made a great number of paintings, though using more vivid colors, trying to give life to his works. As he was counting his days, he dated every work systematically.

Picasso is one of the most important artists of the 20th century, having several paintings which rank among the most expensive of the world.

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