Picasso's Rose Period represents an important epoch in the life and work of the Spanish artist

Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

which had a great impact on the developments of modern art. It began in 1904 at a time when Picasso settled in

Montmartre Montmartre ( , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Right Bank. The historic district established by the City of Paris in 1995 is bordered by Rue Ca ...

at the

Bateau-Lavoir The Bateau-Lavoir ("Washhouse Boat") is the nickname of a building in the Montmartre district of the 18th arrondissement of Paris that is famous in art history as the residence and meeting place for a group of outstanding early 20th-century artist ...

among bohemian poets and writers. Following

Picasso's Blue Period The Blue Period ( es, Período Azul) is a term used to define the works produced by Spanish painter Pablo Picasso between 1901 and 1904 when he painted essentially monochromatic paintings in shades of blue and blue-green, only occasionally warmed ...

– which depicted themes of poverty, loneliness, and despair in somber, blue tones – Picasso's Rose Period represents more pleasant themes of clowns, harlequins and carnival performers, depicted in cheerful vivid hues of red, orange, pink and

earth tone Earth tone is a color scheme with multiple meanings. In its narrowest sense, it refers to "any color containing some brown" – the color of ground or soil (earth). It can also refer to "natural colors" (colors found in nature) such as brown soil, ...

s. Based largely on intuition rather than direct observation, Picasso's Rose Period marks the beginning of the artist's stylistic experiments with

primitivism Primitivism is a mode of aesthetic idealization that either emulates or aspires to recreate a "primitive" experience. It is also defined as a philosophical doctrine that considers "primitive" peoples as nobler than civilized peoples and was an o ...

; influenced by pre-Roman

Iberian sculpture Iberian sculpture, a subset of Iberian art, describes the various sculptural styles developed by the Iberians from the Bronze Age up to the Roman conquest. For this reason it is sometimes described as Pre-Roman Iberian sculpture. Almost all ex ...

, Oceanic and African art. This led to Picasso's African Period in 1907, culminating in the Proto-Cubist ''

Les Demoiselles d'Avignon ''Les Demoiselles d'Avignon'' (''The Young Ladies of Avignon'', originally titled ''The Brothel of Avignon'') is a large oil painting created in 1907 by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso. The work, part of the permanent collection of the Museum o ...

'', regarded as a masterpiece.Wattenmaker, Richard J.; Distel, Anne, et al.,1993, p. 194

Overview

The Rose Period lasted from 1904 to 1906. Picasso was happy in his relationship with Fernande Olivier whom he had met in 1904 and this has been suggested as one of the possible reasons he changed his style of painting.

Harlequin Harlequin (; it, Arlecchino ; lmo, Arlechin, Bergamasque pronunciation ) is the best-known of the '' zanni'' or comic servant characters from the Italian '' commedia dell'arte'', associated with the city of Bergamo. The role is traditional ...

s, circus performers and clowns appear frequently in the Rose Period and populated Picasso's paintings at various stages throughout the rest of his long career. The harlequin, a comedic character usually depicted in checkered patterned clothing, became a personal symbol for Picasso. Le Bateau-Lavoir, circa 1910

The Rose Period has been considered French influenced, while the Blue Period more Spanish influenced, although both styles emerged while Picasso was living in Paris.

began in late 1901, following the death of his friend Carlos Casagemas and the onset of a bout of major depression. It lasted until 1904, when Picasso's psychological condition improved. The Rose Period is named after Picasso's heavy use of pink tones in his works from this period, from the French word for pink, which is ''rose''. Picasso's third highest selling painting, '' Young Girl with a Flower Basket'', and his fifth highest, '' Garçon à la pipe (Boy with a pipe)'' were both painted during the Rose Period. Other significant Rose Period works include: ''Woman in a Chemise (Madeleine)'' (1904–05), '' The Actor'' (1904–1905),Staff, "New York woman falls, rips Picasso painting," AP, January 25, 2010, found a
Yahoo News files
Accessed January 25, 2010. ''Lady with a Fan'' (1905), ''Two Youths'' (1905), ''Harlequin Family'' (1905), ''Harlequin's Family With an Ape'' (1905), ''

La famille de saltimbanques ''Family of Saltimbanques'' (French: ') is a 1905 oil on canvas painting by Pablo Picasso. The work depicts six saltimbanques, a kind of itinerant circus performer, in a desolate landscape. It is considered the masterpiece of Picasso's Rose Peri ...

'' (1905), ''Boy with a Dog'' (1905), ''Nude Boy'' (1906), '' Boy Leading a Horse'' (1905–06), and ''The Girl with a Goat'' (1906). File:Picasso The Actor 1904.JPG, Pablo Picasso, 1904, ''L'acteur'' ( ''The Actor''),

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

, New York File:Pablo Picasso, 1905, Acrobate à la Boule (Acrobat on a Ball), oil on canvas, 147 x 95 cm, The Pushkin Museum, Moscow.jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1905, ''Acrobate à la Boule'' (''Acrobat on a Ball''), oil on canvas, 147 × 95 cm, Pushkin Museum, Moscow File:Pablo Picasso, 1904-05, Les Baladins (Mother and Child, Acrobats), gouache on canvas, 90 x 71 cm Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart.jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1904–05, ''Les Baladins'' (''Mother and Child, Acrobats''), gouache on canvas, 90 × 71 cm,

Staatsgalerie Stuttgart The Staatsgalerie Stuttgart (, "State Gallery") is an art museum in Stuttgart, Germany, it opened in 1843. In 1984, the opening of the Neue Staatsgalerie (''New State Gallery'') designed by James Stirling transformed the once provincial gallery ...

File:Pablo Picasso, 1905, Maternité (Mother and Child).jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1905, ''Maternité'' (''Mother and Child''), private collection File:Pablo Picasso, 1905, Nus (Nudes), pencil on paper.jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1905, ''Nus'' (''Nudes''), pencil on paper File:Pablo Picasso, 1905, Acrobat's Family with a Monkey (Famille au Singe), collage, gouache, watercolor, pastel and india ink on carboard, 104 x 75 cm, Göteborgs Konstmuseum, Goteburg.jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1905, '' Acrobat's Family with a Monkey (Famille au Singe)'', collage, gouache, watercolor, pastel and India ink on cardboard, 104 × 75 cm,

Göteborgs Konstmuseum Gothenburg Museum of Art ( sv, Göteborgs konstmuseum) is located at Götaplatsen in Gothenburg, Sweden. It claims to be the third largest art museum in Sweden by size of its collection. Collections The museum holds the world's finest collect ...

, Gothenburg File:Pablo Picasso, 1905, Fillette nue au panier de fleurs (Le panier fleuri), oil on canvas, 155 x 66 cm, private collection, New York.jpg , Pablo Picasso, 1905, '' Young Girl with a Flower Basket'', oil on canvas, 154.8 x 66.1 cm, private collection Image:Garçon à la pipe.jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1905, '' Garçon à la pipe'', (''Boy with a Pipe''), private collection File:Pablo Picasso, 1905, Lady with a Fan (Femme à l'éventail), oil on canvas, 100.3 x 81 cm, The National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1905, ''Lady with a Fan'' (''Femme à l'éventail''), oil on canvas, 100.3 × 81 cm, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. File:Family of Saltimbanques.JPG, Pablo Picasso, 1905, '' Family of Saltimbanques'', National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. File: GertrudeStein.JPG, Pablo Picasso, 1905–06, ''

Portrait of Gertrude Stein ''Portrait of Gertrude Stein'' (French: ') is an oil on canvas painting of the American writer and art collector Gertrude Stein by Pablo Picasso, which was begun in 1905 and finished the following year. The painting is housed in the Metropolitan ...

'', oil on canvas, 100 x 81.3 cm

, New York City File:Pablo Picasso, 1905-06, Les deux frères (The two brothers), oil on canvas, 141.4 x 97.1 cm, Kunstmuseum Basel.jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1905–06, ''Les deux frères'' (''The two brothers''), oil on canvas, 141.4 × 97.1 cm,

Kunstmuseum Basel The Kunstmuseum Basel houses the oldest public art collection in the world and is generally considered to be the most important museum of art in Switzerland. It is listed as a heritage site of national significance. Its lineage extends back to ...

File:Pablo Picasso, 1906, La Mort d'Arlequin (Death of Harlequin), gouache and pencil on board, 68.5 x 96 cm, private collection.jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1906, ''La Mort d'Arlequin'' (''Death of Harlequin''), gouache and pencil on board, 68.5 × 96 cm, private collection File:Pablo Picasso, 1906, Nu aux mains serrées, gouache on canvas, 96.5 x 75.6 cm, Art Gallery of Ontario.jpg, Pablo Picasso, 1906, ''Nu aux mains serrées'', gouache on canvas, 96.5 × 75.6 cm,

Art Gallery of Ontario The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO; french: Musée des beaux-arts de l'Ontario) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The museum is located in the Grange Park neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, on Dundas Street West between McCaul and Bev ...

Overview

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References

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