Cubism & Early Abstraction · 1915

Man with a Pipe

Pablo Picasso 1881–1973

Still in copyright: the image isn't shown, only the colors measured from it.

Man with a Pipe (1915) by Pablo Picasso. Its palette is led by dark muted azure teal (#334e4f, 31%) and grey (#7e7f7c, 27%), with accents of silver, muted azure teal, scarlet and rich sienna. Overall the canvas is mid-toned, muted and balanced between warm and cool.

Color note

Picasso's early periods are named after colors: the Blue Period (1901–04), which followed a close friend's suicide, and the warmer Rose Period (1904–06). In Analytic Cubism (1909–12) he and Braque cut color back to near-monochrome browns and greys to concentrate on form.

Palette

#334e4f MG 084 dark muted azure teal 30.7% of canvas
#7e7f7c MG 215 grey 27.2% of canvas
#d2d3cf MG 206 silver 12.0% of canvas
#4f2f26 MG 156 dark reddish brown 11.6% of canvas
#2a2b2a MG 222 charcoal 5.8% of canvas
#258070 MG 082 muted azure teal 5.5% of canvas
#ba7857 MG 024 scarlet 3.8% of canvas
#91422f MG 147 rich sienna 3.5% of canvas

Color families

Gray 40%, Brown 28%, Blue 23%, Black 3%, White 2%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.51
Contrast: 0.50
Vividness: 0.027
Warmth: +0.05
Complexity: 217 cells
Hue range: 0.60
Focus: 0.00

Composition

50% of the visual weight is in the right half, 53% in the lower half. Symmetry 0.21 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 15% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 32% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1915
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 130 × 89 cm
Made in: Spain
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago