Symbolism & Aestheticism · 1906

Nude with a Pitcher

Pablo Picasso 1881–1973

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

Nude with a Pitcher (1906) by Pablo Picasso. Its palette is led by reddish brown (#906c56, 27%) and reddish brown (#7d5a47, 27%). Overall the canvas is mid-toned, moderately saturated and warm.

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

#906c56 MG 153 reddish brown 27.2% of canvas
#7d5a47 MG 154 reddish brown 26.6% of canvas
#654c3e MG 176 taupe 19.3% of canvas
#aa8466 MG 165 amber brown 18.3% of canvas
#4e3f36 MG 155 dark reddish brown 8.6% of canvas

Color families

Brown 91%, Orange 7%, Gray 2%, Red 0%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.52
Contrast: 0.27
Vividness: 0.052
Warmth: +1.00
Complexity: 40 cells
Hue range: 0.15
Focus: 0.00

Composition

55% of the visual weight is in the left half, 53% in the lower half. Symmetry 0.58 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 72% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 26% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1906
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 100 × 81 cm
Made in: Spain
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago