1912 Homme Е la guitare Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) Period of creation: 1908-1918

The drawing presents a figure seated in profile, holding a stringed instrument. The composition is dominated by angular forms and fragmented planes, eschewing traditional perspective and naturalistic representation. The artist has broken down the human form into geometric shapes – cubes, triangles, and rectangles – reassembling them in a manner that prioritizes conceptual understanding over mimetic accuracy.
The figure’s head appears as a collection of intersecting lines and planes, suggesting a deconstruction of facial features rather than their faithful depiction. The hair is rendered with dense, scratchy marks, creating a textural contrast against the smoother surfaces of the body. The posture conveys a sense of introspection or melancholy; the shoulders are slumped, and the head appears bowed.
The instrument itself is similarly fragmented, its form reduced to a series of intersecting planes that hint at its shape without fully defining it. The artist’s use of line is particularly noteworthy – thick, dark strokes delineate the major forms, while finer lines create shading and texture. This technique contributes to the drawings overall sense of dynamism and complexity.
Beyond the surface depiction, the work seems to explore themes of perception and representation. By dismantling the figure and instrument into their constituent parts, the artist challenges conventional notions of beauty and realism. The fragmented nature of the forms might suggest a questioning of identity or an exploration of the subjective experience of seeing. There is a sense of isolation conveyed by the solitary figure and the starkness of the background. The drawing’s monochromatic palette reinforces this feeling of austerity and introspection, directing attention to the formal elements of composition and line.