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The Red Armchair

Cubist painting of woman, bright yellow, green, purple colors.
© 2018 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

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  • Cubist painting of woman, bright yellow, green, purple colors.

Date:

December 16, 1931

Artist:

Pablo Picasso
Spanish, active France, 1881–1973

About this artwork

In December 1931 Pablo Picasso began a series of paintings of Marie-Thérèse Walter, a French model with whom he was romantically involved while married to his first wife, Olga Khokhlova. Perhaps acknowledging their double life, Picasso invented a new motif–a face encompassing both frontal and profile views. A constant innovator, Picasso experimented with materials as well as with form and style. The Red Armchair demonstrates the artist’s inventive use of Ripolin, an industrial house paint. Mixing it with oil paint he produced various surfaces, from the rough, yellow background to the almost brushless finish of the black lines.

Status

On View, Gallery 394

Department

Modern Art

Artist

Pablo Picasso

Title

The Red Armchair

Place

Spain (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1931

Medium

Oil and Ripolin on panel

Inscriptions

Signed, u.r.: "Picasso"

Dimensions

131.1 × 98.7 cm (51 5/8 × 38 7/8 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Saidenberg

Reference Number

1957.72

Copyright

© 2018 Estate of Pablo Picasso / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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