Period Africa (Primitivism) Picasso 1906-1909

At the beginning of 1906, Picasso put aside harlequins( after painting a picture of Le Mort d' Arlequin in 1905 ) and

began to make sketches in preparation for painting Les Demoiselles d' Avignon .
Picasso started to become very interested in the naked human form , painted it on and turn it into a simplified form as a statue . His work is also influenced by a visit to an ancient Iberian sculpture exhibition in the Louvre . Portraits and paintings of this period depict the human form in a non - naturalistic way , see it as a volume , simplify and reduce it to the most basic form of perspective and proportion and ignore each other . Picasso also interested in African wooden mask , this might be caused because he was able to identify the mystical elements of the death of his sister Conchita .
Picasso's African period - inspired generate large painting Les Demoiselles d' Avignon . As the title suggests , the painting is about prostitution ( as Avignon is a famous street in Barcelona with prostitutes ) . The painting depicts five naked women representing different prostitutes . Initially this image is a narrative brothel scene with five prostitutes and two men - one patron surrounded by women and a medical student holding a skull . Picasso eventually remove these two men and depicts five prostitutes that look into the audience . Prostitutes on the right holding the curtain back to reveal four other prostitutes out of the white fabric . There was a table in the foreground with fruits , suggesting that this event is for spectators who sit at the table . Box-shaped body , but it shows a woman's body shape with some smooth curve . The two women in the middle has a face like a mask Iberia , with a face like a mask the rest of Africa . Canvas painting was about eight feet square , the overall effect of the painting is very threatening because such a face mask on the right is very terrible .
The colors used in these paintings range from pale white to brown , with blue in the middle of the field . On closer inspection , the canvas is split in two in the middle with a naked woman with her ​​arms outstretched in front of the desk . In this painting ,

Picasso seems to have different ideas to describe the beauty by contrast spooky faces to the right until two in the middle . By comparison of the two naked women center more aesthetically pleasing . Both the central figure also uses fabrics and curtains - classic property to showcase the attractiveness of the female nude . Picasso may use the model of the famous Venus de Milo in the middle of the figure . This painting depicts Picasso 's first painting as a " mystical " . This painting Picasso surprise friends when it was unveiled , and even crazy they stated Picasso . Les Demoiselles d' Avignon through Picasso to feel how it feels to be an innovative genius - on the one hand, he knows he is done, on the other hand was abandoned by his friends . Picasso learned from this period to hide the pieces that are more innovative .
Other works from this period include : Autoportrait a la palette and Portrait de Gertrude Stein .
At this time , Picasso also formed a small band with friends around himself , this is known as La Bande a Picasso . The band members include Guillaume Apollinaire , Andre Salmon and Max Jacob - the third is a poet .