"Absinthe drinker" Picasso painting about loneliness

"The Absinthe Drinker" is stored in Hermitage in St. Petersburg. She is well known all over the world. This is a recognized masterpiece of the young Picasso.

But it is difficult to call the plot of the picture original. And before Picasso, many artists loved the theme of loneliness and desolation. Depicting people with a look to nowhere at a table in a cafe.

We meet such heroes in Mane, and y Degas.

And for Picasso himself, the Hermitage “Absinthe Drinker” is not at all original. He often portrayed single women over a glass. Here are just two of them.

So what is the masterpiece of this particular picture?

It's worth taking a closer look at it.

Details of the Absinthe Drinker

Before us is a woman over 40. She is thin. The elongation of her body is emphasized by a bun of hair and disproportionately long arms and fingers.

Picasso willingly deformed the figures of the heroes. It was not important for him to keep proportions and even more so to make a person realistic. Through these deformations, he depicted their spiritual distortions and vices.

The woman's face is also unique. Ugly, with wide cheekbones and narrow, almost absent lips. The eyes are narrowed. As if a woman is trying to think about something, but the thought always slips away.

She is already under the influence of absinthe. But still trying to keep a trustworthy look. He holds his chin in his hand. She wrapped her other hand around herself.

But the speaker is not only the appearance of the woman. But also the environment.

The woman sits close to the wall. Like being in a very confined space. This enhances the feeling of immersion in oneself. Her loneliness is also emphasized by a clean table, on which, apart from a glass and a siphon, there is nothing. Even tablecloths.

Just a mirror behind her. Which reflects a blurry yellow spot. What's this?

This is reflected in what is happening in the cafe. Before the eyes of the heroine are dancing cheerful couples.

Picasso himself gives us a hint about this. At the same time, he created a pastel version of The Absinthe Drinker.

Behind this "colleague in absinthe" is also a yellow spot. But we see the silhouettes of the dancers.

Perhaps, in the Hermitage version, Picasso decided to leave the eloquent yellowness. Showing that fun and communication have already left the life of a woman.

Plot out of time

And it is worth paying attention to a few details.

Picasso intentionally blends all the lines. It creates a feeling of tobacco smoke and the illusion of intoxication of a woman.

And how many crossed lines are in the picture! Heroine's hands. Reflection in the mirror. Dark lines on the wall. Siphon cover. Symbols of crossed out life.

The color scheme is also speaking. A calm blue color and an unpleasant red tint. A woman balances between common sense and the hallucinatory world of absinthe. Of course, the second will win. Later.

In general, all the details of the picture emphasize the state of mind of the heroine. The short-term pleasure of a drink against the backdrop of a life that is bursting at the seams.

We immediately understand that in this life there are no loved ones, truly relatives. There is no work that brings joy.

There is only sadness and loneliness. Therefore, alcohol is more and more addictive. Helps destroy life.

This is the genius of this painting. Picasso was able to very poignantly show a man in the process of destroying his life.

It doesn't matter what age it's in. This story is timeless. This picture is not about a specific woman. And about all people with a similar fate.

Read about another masterpiece of the master in the article "Girl on the Ball". Why is this a masterpiece?.

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Main illustration: Pablo Picasso. Absinthe lover. 1901 Hermitage, St. Petersburg. Pablo-ruiz-picasso.ru.