Picasso uses rippling rays of sunlight, discernible to the left of this piece, to suggest the blonde hair and radiant beauty of his lover. The pose of his languid model, her right arm flung over her head, is reminiscent of The Sleeping Ariadne, a work of classical sculpture that has inspired many a portrait throughout the history of art. Picasso’s paintbrush seems to have transformed his muse into an ancient goddess, a figure with exaggerated sexual features such as we might associate with cults of fertility or the Earth. Her moon-like face is contrasted by the sun shining down on her from the right. Combining elements of prehistory, antiquity and modernity, the curves and rounded shapes of this Picassian beauty merge with the natural forms of the leaves, fruits and celestial bodies.

© Succession Picasso  2017
Localisation : Paris, musée Picasso
Photo © RMN-Grand Palais (musée Picasso de Paris) / René-Gabriel Ojéda