Acrobat and Young Harlequin (Acrobate et jeune Arlequin)

Discussion

FROM THE BARNES FOUNDATION’S CATALOG

Saltimbanques, or traveling circus performers, were a favorite theme of Pablo Picasso's. These entertainers were a common spectacle in Paris, performing in the public squares of neighborhoods such as Montmartre, where Picasso lived from 1904 to 1909. The performers seen here, likely siblings, seem to be gazing out at the audience, as if the show has just ended. The landscape behind them is probably a stage curtain.

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