1919 Nature morte sur un guВridon devant une fenИtre ouverte Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) Period of creation: 1919-1930

The composition presents a still life arranged on what appears to be a makeshift wooden platform or trestle table positioned before an open window. The artist has fragmented and reassembled recognizable objects – a guitar, a glass, and fragments of other indeterminate forms – into a complex arrangement that defies straightforward spatial representation.
Here we see the use of a restricted palette: primarily browns, blues, grays, and ochres, applied in broad, flat planes. These colors are not used to create realistic shading or modeling; instead, they delineate distinct areas within the composition, contributing to its overall fractured quality. The application of paint seems economical, with visible brushstrokes adding texture and a sense of immediacy.
The guitar is rendered as a series of angular shapes, its form abstracted to the point where it’s barely discernible. A similar deconstruction occurs with the glass; its transparency is suggested through the use of blue washes layered over darker tones. The table itself is broken down into geometric blocks, and the open window is indicated by a patch of lighter color behind the objects, though any sense of depth or perspective is deliberately avoided.
The arrangement feels less like a depiction of observed reality and more like an exploration of form and spatial relationships. There’s a deliberate ambiguity in the positioning of elements; they seem to float within the picture plane rather than being anchored by traditional compositional devices. The lack of clear foreground and background contributes to this sense of disorientation.
Subtly, theres a feeling of melancholy or quiet contemplation evoked by the muted colors and fragmented forms. The simplicity of the setting – a table before a window – suggests an intimate, domestic space, yet the disruption of recognizable shapes creates a tension between familiarity and alienation. The work might be interpreted as reflecting a sense of postwar fragmentation, where established structures and certainties have been shattered, leaving behind a landscape of broken forms and uncertain meanings.