Location📍 Kröller-Müller Museum → Now on display

Violin

Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque developed cubism during the first decades of the 20th century, a movement that progressed through several distinct phases. This work stands as a prime example of analytical cubism. During this specific phase, the figure or object is thoroughly dissected, broken into fragments, and actively depicted from multiple viewpoints.

The illusion of a natural perspective disappears completely within this canvas. Instead, a meticulous network of surfaces placed next to and behind each other is created, clearly separated by lines and shadows. Highly typical of analytical cubism, the composition is built up directly from the middle and purposefully 'fades out' towards the edges. The oval shape of the painting is also striking.

In this composition, the starting point, the violin, only remains recognizable in a few areas: the curl of the neck, the strings, the bridge, the curvature of the body, and the shape of the f-holes. The colours are muted and strictly limited to ochre, brown, and grey. All of the artist's attention is entirely focused on the experimentation with the form.