In this painting of Girl Wearing Large Hat (1901), you can sense the post-impressionist type of quality in his painting.

Below is a drawing the Picasso did of his sister Lola. You can tell that he was an accomplished artist even at the age of 19!

Cubism

Cubism was an abstract movement of the early 1900's. Abstract means to distort real images into basic shapes or ideas. Among the most well-known cubists are Leger, Braque and, of course, Picasso.

What most people don't know is that Pablo Picasso started out as a fairly skilled artist. His early drawings and paintings were very realistic. Like most artists, though, Picasso went through various stages or periods.

The Blue Period was one of Picasso's first identifiable stages. After Picasso moved to Paris (and coping with the suicide of a friend), his paintings became very lonely and 'blue' - blue in both color and mood.

The Rose Period was much more uplifting, using many of the circus performers that Picasso lived with a subject matter. Note the 'Reddish' appearance of the paintings.

Picasso had several influences that led to Cubism,  including: (1) the large, block-like brushstrokes of Paul Cezanne and (2) the geometric qualities of african masks.

Below is an African Zimba mask to the left, and one of Picasso's self-portraits (1907). Look at how they are similar in shapes of the facial features...

Picasso's Old Guitarist(1903) is a great example of the depressing style of his Blue Period.
(Click to see larger views.)

Family of Saltimbanques (1905) is much more colorful as an expression of his Rose Period.

Three Musicians is one of Picasso's most famous works. Even though it's made of basic shapes, you can still see the clarinet player, the guitarist and the singer.