Picasso’s development toward cubism reached its climax with the monumental
justly celebrated Demoiselles d’Avignon (1906). This painting, named for a
brothel in Barcelona’s Avignon Street, depicts, in a highly stylized form,
five angular nude or partially draped women grouped around an arrangement of
fruit. This final, condensed version, developed through many preparatory works,
was attained by gradual simplifications and eliminations of an originally
conspicuous subject matter. 1. LINEAR (SHARP CONTOURS) VS PAINTERLY (LINES ARE
INDISTINCT Picasso shows a rethinking of the human body in Les Demoiselles. This
ranges from a simplified naturalism, (in the centre figures) to an increased
sense of fragmentation in to angular forms, each of which appears to have an
independent existence. Such disjunction of body parts challenged the standards
by which the human body had been constructed before. In synchronicity, the
background elements of draperies and wall were fragmented, aligned with the
figural handling. 2. PLANE (SPACE BULIT UP OF SEMI-INDEPENDENT PLANES) VS
RECESSION (UNIFIED BY DIAGONAL PLANES) It is quite difficult to determine
whether Les Demoiselles should be catogorized as the “plane” or recession”
option for the following reasons: Picasso shifted the point of view at will
heads, noses and eyes are seen simultaneously in profile and full front. In
other words, the vision of the spectator is enlarged to include a number of
different views. As thought they were moving form point to point, looking up
then down. Modern studies of perception have shown that this is the way one
forms a visual image of an object. Not from one fixed all encompassing glance,
but from an infinite number of momentary glimpses, formulated and unified into a
whole by the spectator’s mind. Cubism introduced into painting not only a new
kind of space, but also another dimension, time. Therefore one may conclude that
Les Demoiselles is neither built up of semi-independent planes nor unified by
diagonals. 3. ABSOULTE CLARITY (DESCIBED OBJECTS) VS RELATIVE CLARITY (SUGGESTED
OBJECTS) It is also quite difficult to determine whether this painting depicts
“absolute clarity” or “relative clarity.” One might suggest that Les
Demoiselles demonstrates “absolute clarity” since all objects are in plane
sight, meaning none of the figures/objects are clouded by shadow. Yet,
“relative clarity” is also suggested. Although the figures/objects may
easily be viewed, it can, at times be hard to determine what exactly is being
observed, (ie. drapery) 4. COLOUR + LIGHT ADHERES TO FROM VS COLOUR + LIGHT IS
COLOUR REFRACTED/REFLECTED There is no suggestion of either light or shadow,
with the exception of the figure in the upper right corner who appears to be
engulfed in shadow. 5. POTENTIALLY LIMITLESS TIME VS SINGLE DRAMATIC MOMENT
Since Les Demoiselles depicts a brothel scene one would assume that a series a
lounging nude females would be common place, therefore depicting a potentially
limitless period of time.