Which painter created 'The Old Guitarist' during his Blue Period?

Pablo Picasso created The Old Guitarist during his Blue Period. Painted in late 1903 and early 1904, the oil-on-panel work shows a gaunt, elderly musician hunched over his guitar in a stark palette of blue and blue-green.

The painting reflects Picasso’s preoccupation with poverty, isolation, and suffering. His close friend Carlos Casagemas died by suicide in 1901, an event that deeply affected him, while Picasso himself experienced financial hardship. During the Blue Period, which is generally dated from 1901 to 1904, he repeatedly portrayed beggars, prisoners, prostitutes, and other marginalized figures.

The guitar is a striking exception to the nearly monochromatic composition: its warmer brown color draws the eye and gives the musician’s world a visual center. The work is now held by the Art Institute of Chicago. Its elongated anatomy and compressed space convey emotional distress without relying on a detailed setting.

Researchers have also discovered earlier compositions beneath the visible painting using X-rays and infrared imaging, including a mother with a child and an animal. A common mix-up is confusing Picasso’s Blue Period with his later Rose Period, which used warmer colors and more circus-related subjects before Picasso helped develop Cubism.