1916 Femme assise dans un fauteuil Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) Period of creation: 1908-1918

The drawing presents a seated female figure rendered in a style characterized by fragmentation and geometric simplification. Here we observe a deliberate dismantling of traditional representational forms; the subjects features are not depicted with naturalistic accuracy but rather as a series of intersecting planes and angular lines. The face, for instance, is reduced to a collection of sharp angles and rectangular shapes, suggesting an almost mask-like quality.
The figure’s posture conveys a sense of introspection or perhaps melancholy. She appears withdrawn, her body angled slightly away from the viewer. The artist has employed a limited tonal range – primarily black lines on a light background – which contributes to the drawings starkness and emphasizes the linearity of the composition. There is an absence of shading that would soften the edges or create volume; instead, the focus remains firmly on the contours and structural elements.
The treatment of the body further reinforces this sense of deconstruction. Limbs are elongated and distorted, their connections to the torso appearing somewhat arbitrary. The overall effect is one of instability and a questioning of conventional notions of form and perspective.
Subtly, theres an implication of confinement or restriction. While seated, the figure’s posture suggests not comfort but rather a certain rigidity. The chair itself is only hinted at through lines, further contributing to the feeling that the subject is trapped within a defined space, both physically and perhaps emotionally. This sense of enclosure might be interpreted as a reflection of societal constraints or personal anxieties prevalent during the period in which this work was created.
The drawing’s power lies not in its depiction of a recognizable likeness but rather in its ability to evoke a mood of quiet contemplation and underlying tension through its unconventional approach to representation.