A Study of Picasso's Painting Materials and Techniques in Six of His Early Portraits

Sessa, Clarimma; Garnica, Reyes Jiménez; Rosi, Francesca; Fontana, Raffaella; Garcı́a, J.F.

doi:10.1080/01971360.2016.1235438

Cited by 8 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…An important aspect of Picasso`s technique in Acrobat Family is the occurrence of bone/ivory black and Prussian blue which are often used in mixtures. As reported by Sessa et al this fact seems to be a common feature of Picasso's early works [24].…”

Section: Black Grey and Brown Paintsupporting

confidence: 57%

“…The complex composition of this neutral-brownish hue shows the wish of Picasso to mix different pigments to obtain a final desired chromatic effect. This ability has been also reported in paintings of his early career, previous to the Rose period [24]. An important aspect of Picasso`s technique in Acrobat Family is the occurrence of bone/ivory black and Prussian blue which are often used in mixtures.…”

Section: Black Grey and Brown Paintmentioning

confidence: 61%

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Picasso’s Acrobat Family in focus: an investigation of materials and techniques of an iconic work in the collection of the Gothenburg Museum of Art

et al. 2020

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The Acrobat Family is one of Pablo Picasso's highly rated works from his Rose Period. The painting was one of the first two works by the artist acquired by the Stein's, and in 1922 it came to Gothenburg Art Museum. In catalogues, the materials used for the work are described as a mix of gouache, pastel, watercolour and Indian ink on cardboard; however, the information is often contradictory and inaccurate. An extensive scientific investigation of the painting was carried out to unravel Picasso's technique, materials and the object's condition. The results indicate that the cardboard is of an acidic nature and the techniques used by the artist are based on different binding media, possibly oil, wax and polysaccharides. Interesting results have been achieved on the discoloured blue areas, where ultramarine blue and Prussian blue are the main components.

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Section: Black Grey and Brown Paintsupporting

confidence: 57%

Section: Black Grey and Brown Paintmentioning

confidence: 61%

Picasso’s Acrobat Family in focus: an investigation of materials and techniques of an iconic work in the collection of the Gothenburg Museum of Art

et al. 2020

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“…Finally, the blue pigments analysed were also mixtures of pigments where ultramarine was the main blue identified. The identified pigments matched those found in other Picasso paintings studied from the same time period [39,[42][43][44]. The four paintings were in a cubist style, with uniform areas of colour.…”

Section: Discussion Of Experimental Results and Surface Visual Observsupporting

confidence: 72%

Picasso’s 1917 paint materials and their influence on the condition of four paintings

et al. 2020

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“…In contrast, the vibrant yellow is only present within the figure, in the chest, arms, and face. XRF spectroscopy (not shown) carried out at numerous points across both yellow areas revealed the presence of cadmium, barium, and lead, suggesting the use of cadmium yellow (CdS), barium white (barium sulfate, BaSO 4 ), and lead white (basic lead carbonate, 2PbCO 3 ·Pb(OH) 2 ) in the paints and/or the ground layer, all materials commonly found in paints used by Picasso. − …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Degradation of Cadmium Yellow Paint: New Evidence from Photoluminescence Studies of Trap States in Picasso’s Femme (Époque des “Demoiselles d’Avignon”)

et al. 2019

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Paints based on cadmium sulfide (CdS) were popular among artists beginning in the mid-19th century. Some paint formulations are prone to degrade, discoloring and disfiguring paintings where they have been used. Pablo Picasso's Femme (E ́poque des "Demoiselles d'Avignon") (1907) includes two commercial formulations of CdS: one is visibly degraded and now appears brownish yellow, while the other appears relatively intact and is vibrant yellow. This observation inspired the study reported here of the photoluminescence emission from trap states of the two CdS paints, complemented by data from multispectral imaging, Xray fluorescence spectroscopy, micro-FTIR, and SEM-EDS. The two paints exhibit trap state emissions that differ in terms of spectrum, intensity, and decay kinetics. In the now-brownish yellow paint, trap state emission is highly favored with respect to near band edge optical recombination. This observation suggests a higher density of surface defects in the now-brownish yellow paint that promotes the surface reactivity of CdS particles and their subsequent paint degradation. CdS is a semiconductor, and surface defects in semiconductors can trap free charge carriers; this interaction becomes stronger at reduced particle size or, equivalently, with increased surface to volume ratio. Here, we speculate that the strong trap state emission in the now-brownish cadmium yellow paint is linked to the presence of CdS particles with a nanocrystalline phase, possibly resulting from a low degree of calcination during pigment synthesis. Taken together, the results presented here demonstrate how photoluminescence studies can probe surface defects in CdS paints and lead to an improved understanding of their complex degradation mechanisms.

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A Study of Picasso's Painting Materials and Techniques in Six of His Early Portraits

Cited by 8 publications

References 19 publications

Picasso’s Acrobat Family in focus: an investigation of materials and techniques of an iconic work in the collection of the Gothenburg Museum of Art

Picasso’s Acrobat Family in focus: an investigation of materials and techniques of an iconic work in the collection of the Gothenburg Museum of Art

Picasso’s 1917 paint materials and their influence on the condition of four paintings

Degradation of Cadmium Yellow Paint: New Evidence from Photoluminescence Studies of Trap States in Picasso’s Femme (Époque des “Demoiselles d’Avignon”)

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